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Meet
the 2009 Whooping Crane Chicks!
Hatch-year 2009 of the Eastern Flock |
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Crane # 928 |
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Date Hatched |
June 5, 2009 |
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Gender |
Male |
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Egg Source |
International Crane Foundation |
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Permanent (Attached after reaching Florida)
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*Juvenile
band: White |
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Personality,
Early Training
Notes from
the captive breeding "hatchery" at Patuxent WRC
in Maryland:
On June 12, 928 the "costumes" (trainers Bev and Brooke) introduced 928 to the trike engine for the first time. The little guy jumped into his "mama's lap" (Bev's lap) and tried to burrow into her feathers (costume)! Bev wrote: "While this is extremely endearing to me, it serves no purpose. So after Brooke turned off the engine, I gently placed 928 back on the ground to try it again. Eventually we got him to calm down and eat mealworms, but couldn’t get him to relax enough to follow the trike." He'll get many chances to do better in the days ahead.
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Arrival
in Wisconsin
Photo Bev Paulan, Operation Migration |
Notes
of Flight School in Wisconsin:
He was flown to Wisconsin with Cohort #3 chicks on July 10. Their
first training session as a group was July 15 and 928 did beautifully.
All of the chicks followed the trike and paid
no attention to one another. This cohort has a wide age range so the older
birds are much bigger than 928, 929 and 931. The trainers keep the three
younger chicks together on one side of the pen, away from the bigger birds.
Less than two weeks later, all of them came out of the pen, followed
the
ultralight
eagerly, and
gobbled
up
treats when they reached the end of the runway. These youngest
birds weren't flying yet at the end of July, but are making
progress. Go, Cohort
3!
By August 17 young 928 was flying in ground effect, but he had handlers worried. Brooke tells why: On August 17 Erin and I went to University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine with our proud, but ailing little 928. His breathing has sounded lately like the ‘Little Engine That Could’ climbing up a steep grade, so it was decided a CT scan was in order to better diagnose the problem." They were thrilled when Dr. Hartup said #928's lungs looked okay, and went back to Necedah NWR with lighter hearts. They walked #928 back to his pen for a reunion with his cohort mates, but they will continue to monitor his health and breathing. Three cheers for #928, the Team and all the medical experts!
By the end of August, #928 was flying. He keeps almost too close to the plane and the costume, and it will be a while before he can keep up with the rest of the group. He still gets a daily pill stuffed in a yummy smelt (small fish) to help him get well. He has asthma. Barb was very happy to see that after flying 10 minutes during the Sept. 19 training flight, he wasn't wheezing at all! One day #914 was bossing around the younger, not-as-strong #928, probably just because she COULD. Hang in there, #928! He is still taking daily medicine for his respiratory troubles. He kept dropping out on Sep. 30 when the combined cohorts two and three trained together. Then came many days of no training due to bad weather. When all 21 birds finally trained together on Oct. 9, #928 flew just one circuit before returning to the comfort of his familiar pen. The team is a bit worried, but they are going to give him a chance to migrate with his flockmates. He continues to have respiratory problems, and the team worries about his ability to manage the migration. On training sessions he launches eagerly, but then just flies a short circuit around the pensite and quickly returns to the runway where he calls and calls. His quick return and his calling encourage others to do the same. Training gets all messed up!
October 11: Migration has not yet begun but the team tried to combine training with a short flight to a remote part of the refuge (closer to the first stopover site) where a travel pen was set up for the cranes. However,the team decided to leave 928 behind in the pen when the other birds were released because of 928's habit of coming back to the pen and calling to the others to do the same. The day didn't go as planned, and 11 flock mates ended up with #928 in the old pen, while the other 9 were at the travel pen set up on a farther part of the refuge. What a day!
Oct. 12: The weather didn't allow a flight over to the travel pen, so the team decided to crate the 9 birds at the old pen and transport them—all except for #928—to join the other 11 at a farther point on the refuge. Because they aren't sure of the reason for 928's unwillingness to fly very long, they took him to a different pen to spend the night by himself. This is called abandonment conditioning. The team hopes 928 will be so happy to get back with his flockmates that he will stay with the ultralight and other birds as migration gets underway. Costumed handlers will tend to him. He will also be given opportunities to flight train, but on his own. The team hopes will help them find out if his problem is behavioral or related to his respiratory issue.
Oct. 15: Sad news from the Team: Today 928 died. He had so much scarring in his lungs that it was difficult for him to fly at all, and when he dropped out of flights he screamed and attracted the others back to land with him. He struggled for breath when the weather was humid. His lung problems were likely caused by Aspergillosis, which can be spread to other birds.
Last updated: 10/15/09
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