Whooping Crane
 

Wrong Winds (+0 Miles)
November 19, 2010: Migration Day 41



Pilot Joe Duff sends the verdict: "Today we tried to take off but the winds were too strong again." It's no go for the second day in a row in Wayne County, IL. Cross your fingers for the right winds tomorrow!

Meanwhile, here's exciting news about their wild Whooping crane cousins migrating from Canada to Texas: Six of the 10 radioed Whooping cranes (that is, wild cranes wearing leg bands with radio transmitters) completed the migration to Aransas NWR. Four radioed cranes still in migration are located in Saskatchewan, North Dakota, and South Dakota. At their wintering grounds in Texas, Whooping Crane Coordinator Tom Stehn expects an estimated record number of 290 Whooping cranes that could include 45 or more juveniles! See a slideshow about RAY and YAY, the very first wild whoopers in a long time to get "radioed."

In the Classroom: Journal or Discussion

(a) Pilot Brooke wonders: “Do our dear little whooper chicks ever laugh?” He says his answer is always the same:“How could they not?” Image you are a chick. What are some things YOU would think are funny?
(b-for-bonus) Humidity at camp today is 100%. How do you feel during strenuous exercise on humid days? What effect do you think such humid air would have on the birds if they had flown? If the birds were making the decision to fly or not, what do you think they would be doing given today's weather?


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Journey North is pleased to feature this educational adventure presented in cooperation with the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP).

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