Whooping Crane The Cranes and Lake Michigan: Next Steps May 14, 2004 Report by Sara Zimorski, ICF/WCEP The Problem: See The Cranes and Lake Michigan: What to Do Sara Zimorski with a grey crowned crane at the International Crane Center (ICF) in Wisconsin The Decision for Now The bottom line after our May 11, 2004 Bird Team conference call is that we've decided to leave the birds in Michigan to do what they want for the time being. We will consider moving them if they get into trouble, or move to an area with poor habitat--either in Michigan or Ohio--if they were to go back there, where very little suitable crane habitat exists. Project biologist and tracker Dr. Richard Urbanek has been in touch with folks in Michigan to see if they can check on the birds and help monitor them for us. Additionally he'll probably go over there or have Lara fly over there to check out the habitat they're in and see what they're up to. Right now we only know for sure that #1 and #9 are together, because of the PTT data; no one has seen all five birds together since they left Ohio. We assume they're still together, but don't know for sure. What We DO know The birds initially flew in W and NW winds when they were leaving FL and they seem to have gotten blown off course to the east. This is why they ended up on the wrong side of the lake. The birds have attempted to head in the correct direction that would get them back to Necedah, except the lake is blocking their path. Cranes don't like to fly over water; no thermals are generated over the water and, though they could easily fly the distance across the lake, for all they know it's an ocean--not a lake. If the weather was clear and the birds got up high enough they might be able to see across the lake and then feel more comfortable attempting to cross it, but it seems if they could or wanted to go across the lake they would have already done so. However, MI is one of the dispersal states that borders the migration states and the birds are welcome in MI as long as we want them to stay there, or until they choose to leave. Additionally, Michigan has lots of good crane habitat. Reviewing the Risks There are risks associated with catching, handling, and transporting birds. All the planning and precautions we take can't guarantee something won't go wrong. These are valuable birds. Lots of folks are nervous about capturing them. They simply don't want to, or feel uncomfortable taking that risk if we don't have to. How Important is Their First Summer Location? We don't and can't necessarily understand the importance of the location the cranes pick to spend their first summer. Crane #7 from 2001 spent her first summer at Horicon NWR and has faithfully returned there last year and this year as well. Cranes #3 and #15 from 2002 spent most of last summer in South Dakota, but so far seem content sticking around WI, with an occasional flight into MN. So will these eight HY 2003 birds want to return to Michigan next summer if we leave them there this year? Maybe, maybe not. I believe (and others do as well) that even if the birds stayed in Michigan, they would likely migrate to Florida in the fall. And unless they flew in westerly winds and got pushed east again, they would likely return to Wisconsin next year. They seem to know where they want to and should go; they simply have an obstacle blocking their path and they can't figure out how to get over or around it. What If? Educated Guesses No one believes it's necessarily bad for the birds to stay in MI, but it's not something we planned on and again those 8 birds are 22 percent of the current eastern migratory population. Some team members believe we really need to focus on building up the core population and have them concentrated in Wisconsin in order to have the number of cranes that will ensure successful breeding, reproduction, and therefore a successful project in the future. When these birds are older and looking for territories and mates, will there be problems if they don't spend time in and around Necedah and the other birds in the population? Or is it okay for the birds to disperse and for us to just watch and learn? Unfortunately we don't know the right answer, if there is one, and can only speculate and make educated guesses. We don't know the answers to these questions. This is an experiment and we are still learning. There are risks and benefits to all possible scenarios. These are valuable birds in which we've invested a tremendous amount of time and energy for the first 10-11 months of their lives. This project and this particular situation illustrates the balance we have to strike. It’s a balance between setting the birds free to be wild, and learning by watching what they do without interfering--and the desire and need to continue protecting the investment we have in the birds and this project in order to make this population succeed. Try This! Journaling Question Why is such great care taken to bring the ultralight chicks to Necedah NWR from their captive breeding facility at Patuxent WRC before they learn to fly. (Forhelp answering this, see Goodbye Patuxent, Hello Necedah.) What do YOU think will happen in the following years if these eight young whooping cranes do not return to their first fledging grounds?   Journey North is pleased to feature this educational adventure made possible by the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP). Facebook Pinterest Twitter © 1997 – 2019 Journey North. All rights reserved.