WHOOPERS HAPPENING podcasts
The World of the Endangered Whooping Cranes
Whoopers Happening

Whoopers Happening_46 A Team Effort!




How many young Whooping crane chicks are expected to be on the migration this year?  What was done to eliminate the illness that was so devastating the past two years at Patuxent?  And how are the recent hatches doing at Necedah?  Answers to these and other exciting details are revealed in Whoopers Happening 46.  So, download or click the button below and listen as a few of the people who know these rare and special birds best talk about what has been happening and how they are doing this year.

Scenes like the above will become commonplace over Necedah NWR in the weeks ahead as the Operation Migration team conducts flight training with the new chicks, forming the Class of 2009. 
photo: Mark Chenoweth

Download | Duration: 00:13:18


 




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New Duck Stamp Now Available!



The new duck stamp for 2009 are now available, and can be purchased on the web or at your local post office.  The great part about making a purchase of a stamp is that 98% of your purchase goes to helping protect wetlands and secure habitat across the US.  Most refuges also allow you free admission upon showing your stamp when visiting.

Millions of dollars that have directly helped purchase wetlands, restore habitat and insure the wildlife sanctuaries we all appreciate have bee possible over the years from the sale of these stamps.

For more information click here.  Very few things you can invest in or purchase have as positive an effect as buying these stamps! You don't have to be a hunter or even like them... your purchase insures the future of wildlife and wetlands, and that includes the Whooping cranes!


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Newly Hatched Wild Chick #W901... What Do You Think?

All of the Whooping crane nests at Necedah failed this year, with the Black Fly infestation being blamed for parents abandoning their nests. This has happened the past several years, and biologists are working to do what they can to solve this problem.  Using pesticides at a national refuge is not allowed, so other solutions must be invoked.

Of the 3 or 4 parents who re-nested after the first 11 nests failed this year, a couple are still incubating and whether they will have chicks hatch is yet to be seen.  However, one nest investigated just last week, was found to have infertile eggs.  With a hatch date only a day or so away, the biologists at the International Crane Foundation in Wisconsin, not far from Necedah, removed these eggs and replaced one egg with a live egg just about to hatch.  This egg did hatch with the new wild parents just last Friday.  The new chick is W901, and the parents are treating this chick as their own so far with no lack of attention and care.

The fact the team gave the parents the one viable egg that hatched and is now under the parental care of #s 212 and 419 eliminates the conflict often awaiting siblings when both chicks hatch.  Generally, only one chick will survive due to predation, lack of proper nourishment and food from the parents who often tend to feed one chick more than the other, and just the rivalry that results, often with one chick killing off its sibling for food.

One question does arise in this situation... how do you view this 'wild-hatched chick', considering the fact that human intervention made this possible, and the chick is not actually the product of its surrogate parents?  What they did is fine, as the chick will be raised as any wild Whooper chick would be.  But the bird coming from a captive parent at ICF is not exactly the same thing we saw with W601 and W602 when they hatched back in 2006, and it does make you think a little.  If, however, this 'hatch' with 212 and 419 should make them better parents and they produce young next year, something the First Family, #211 and 217 have not repeated since their historic hatch in June of 2006, this is another aspect that might help with the wild propagation of these birds.

What do you think?  Do you think that W901 is basically the SAME as W601... are both equally 'wild', or are we now seeing a different sort of parenting?  With the term 'wild' in the news with the Whooping cranes so much the past week or two, since the capture and removal of #710 to Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa because he was becoming 'too tame' (loss of his wild nature), this begs the question how 'wild' is really defined.  

Paula in IL made this comment below, which is a great idea I think:

'This awesome little guy will be as wild as the rest, but none-the-less, started out a little differently. I would propose using a designation other than the "W". Leave "W" numbers for wild birds from natural parents. Use something like "F" or "WF", for chicks from eggs placed with wild foster parent whoopers.'

What do you think of W901... will you regard this bird the same as you do when you hear about W601?  Or will the adoptive method the team used allowing the parents to hatch this chick make this perhaps less significant?  Do voice your comments by clicking the Add Comment link below.   






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Whoopers Happening_45 New Life, Lost Freedom


                         

With 4 nests still incubating as this podcast is published, it's only another day or two before we know if new chicks will be hatched; this is a major concern for the WCEP team.  It's been 3 years since the first wild Whooping crane pair hatched at Necedah... the first wild pair in Wisconsin in over a century.  With the first 11 nests all having failed, the hopes now are for the pairs that re-nested to have successful hatches.  The chick that has its own mate now, W601, was the result of re-nesting with one parental pair (#211 &  #217) now also nesting at Necedah NWR.

The loss of one bird who had become too accustomed to humans, #710, has upset many as any loss to the flock always does.  This bird was feeding along with others last winter in Hernando, County Florida, and the homeowner was asked to please refrain from doing this. Though the reasons were presented, she chose not to comply.  Now this bird is to be a display bird at the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa, FL.   A sad relocation for a bird that had been a favorite with the Operation Migration team in 2007.   Any healthy bird that loses its freedom is a less than desirable thing and no sensible person would want to see this happen.

More on the fate of #710 when he is introduced to the female that resides at Lowry Park Zoo in July.  The male that had been with her died early in 2008.

The International Crane Foundation is dedicating their new 'Spirit of Africa' exhibit on Saturday, June 20th.  The new facility is constructed with eco-friendly materials and will exhibit the 4 crane species native to Africa including the Grey and Black Crowned cranes, Wattled cranes and Blue cranes.

For more about this new exhibit at the ICF, check out their website...Spirit of Africa.

Our e-mail, should you care to write or send a comment, is whoopershappening@earthlink.net .  Thanks!

Download | Duration: 00:11:30

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Freedom Lost...

PhotoFemale Whooper adult at Lowry Park Zoo, 2005.  Mark Chenoweth

The flock lost another bird last week.  But this time it wasn’t predation, power lines, accident or illness that caused the loss.   This bird is still alive.  One bird that had taken advantage of a woman feeding wild birds in her backyard was simply becoming ‘too tame’, and his association with humans and food was a concern for the WCEP 

They discussed this bird and his fate for weeks.  The bird, #710, from the Class of 2007 Whooper chicks, was not injured nor had he caused any physical threat or injury to anyone.  Other Whoopers were also fed by a woman in Hernando County, Florida last winter.  The WCEP tracking team talked with this lady, and asked her to please refrain from feeding the birds. They explained that the large, white birds were rare and had a huge investment in time and money, and needed to be wild but her feeders were attracting them.  Her other neighbors did cooperate and stopped feeding for a time, but in spite of their pleading, she continued to feed the Whoopers, other wild birds and Sandhills.  It was HER property and she felt she could act as she wished.

Last week Whooping crane #710 was captured in his wild environment and flown to the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa, Florida. The Lowry Zoo is one of the top zoos in America, and had lost the male portion of its Whooping crane pair early last year. Friday he was placed in routine quarantine at Lowry for at least 30 days.  

He will be well-cared for and on display with the female there.  She is a very sweet bird and older than 710. She came from the non-migrating flock on the Kissimmee prairie after suffering an injury a while back.  

With the actions of one selfish individual, all was undone and this bird lost its freedom.   The protection of the entire flock must be the prime concern, and other Whoopers making human association was their worst fear.  But so far this has not happened.

We look forward to seeing #710 in his new habitat in Tampa, and there will be more here about his new home and how he is doing very soon.  In the meantime, 4 nests are still being incubated at Necedah… in the next few days we’ll know if new baby Whooping cranes have been hatched.  


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Whooper Happenings_44 The Promise to Return...


In trying to take all that happens each month and make a summary or compilation in brief, it leaves many things that must be left out due to time and just simply interest which some things have over others.  However, most important aspects get their time on this podcast or are focused on by the media.  One is the Crane Cam which is new, but will become more familiar in the months ahead.  

A number of bird losses since our last podcast make this a less than optimistic piece, and also with the failure of all 11 nests that had been under scrutiny at Necedah NWR.  However, there are several new nests (re-nests) and these may well prove fruitful with new chicks in the weeks ahead.  Don't forget that the one chick, W601, was the result of a re-nest and hatched towards the end of June back in '06. We hope history repeats itself this year.

Endangered Species Day is May 15th, and if you would like more information and to check to see what activities may be planned for your area, go to endangeredspeciesday.org .  

Write to us with comments or suggestions below or at whooperhappenings@earthlink.net .

Download | Duration: 00:06:10



Thanks for listening!

Photo: WCEP (New baby Whooping crane chick stands in awe of its model adult at Patuxent NWR.)


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Whooper Happenings_43 Homeward Bound

The Whoopers are flying back home, and at least 4 of the 7 Class of 2008 at Chassahowitzka NWR have headed for Necedah.  There have been about 30 birds arriving so far, and with a total of about 84 birds, more than half will be making the journey very soon. The International Crane Foundation's Sara Zimorski heads the winter monitoring team at Chass, and she also takes acre of the insemination of the parental pairs at the ICF.  

Peggy and I visited with Operation Migration's Beverly Paulan and Brooke Pennypacker in late February.  Those two work much harder than most of us do, and their love for these birds is just a little obvious!  Those of you who love reading their accounts on the  Operation Migration Field Journal will enjoy listening to what they have to say.

Tom Stehn is vacationing, so we chatted with Canada Wildlife Services' Brian Johns.  Brian talks about the upcoming breeding season in Wood Buffalo, and the severe losses of many Whoopers this winter at Aransas and on their southward migration.

Check out the short article, 'Who's the Predator?  Who's the Prey?'' from Tom Stehn on  Journey North...  
http://www.learner.org/jnorth/tm/crane/jr/photo/EatSnake_2.html

International Migratory Bird Day  is Saturday, May 9th this year, and Operation Migration will again be at Disney's Animal Kingdom.  (I mention that IMBD is the 16th in the podcast; scratch that... it's actually May 9th this year.)

A new batch of Whooper chicks will be coming soon, and we'll let you know how things are progressing!

Thanks for listening to Whooper Happenings #43!  


Download | Duration: 00:00:00

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Whooper Happenings_42 The Class of 2008

This time around I talk with Joe Duff about the migration and how he feels things went, and top cover pilots Don and Paula Lounsbury at the Dunnellon Airport flyover in January. 


Coming up in the next several weeks, we'll hear what Beverly Paulan and Brooke Pennypacker said about the migration, raising the chicks, and their thoughts about the pending northern migration, which always brings bittersweet feelings from those working closest to these wonderful chicks! 

Don't forget, you can post a comment or ask a question below in the new Whooper Happenings Blog.  We may not know the answer, but we know who does! 

Thanks for listening to Whooper Happenings #42!

Photo:  a trio of chicks at St. Mark's just don't want to let Bev tuck them in for the night.  They'd rather be flying, and even their costumed Mom doesn't blame them!  But their exercise fun makes bedtime a chore almost every night Bev told us!

* I state that the Aransas-Wood Buffalo flock has a total near 266 birds this season in this podcast; a recent release from Tom's office now says that they believe that nearly 18 birds are dead this winter, and this would make the total number of Whooping cranes closer to 250, the second worst season since 1990.  Many of these deaths are juvenile birds, but we will hopefully talk with Tom in the next podcast.  Exact totals are difficult, and the birds are tough to count and evaluate, but the experience Tom and his team have does indicate a serious problem this year with drought conditions, and food-water sources, which are definitely related.  


Download | Duration: 00:21:44

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Whooper Happenings_41 On Their Own

The flyover at the Dunnellon Airport took place the morning of January 22nd, with pilot Brooke Pennypacker making a second circuit with all 7 young Whooping crane chicks much to the delight of the cold observers below. The brisk morning likely kept many away, as perhaps 200 people turned out to watch as the chicks were taken to their pensite at Halpata-Tastanaki Reserve, and then transferred the next morning to Chassahowitzka NWR.

Some comments from those who were there, including members of Mrs. Trublehorn's Class from Tampa Prep, and we also chatted with ultralight pilot Richard van Heuvelen.

So, the Journey ends for these 14 young birds. Their life in the wild as free birds has already begun, as the team at each site just watches over them providing food and water... hoping they will come back to the protection of the pensite each evening. So far, this is what they know. What concerns the team is the dangers that lurk for these young birds such as from bobcats, raccoons, and other aggressive predators. Their lives have been sheltered so far, but they are now learning the outside world on their own. All too soon, in just a matter of weeks, they will make the trip back to Necedah on their own for the first time. This is a time filled with tension and concern not to mention worry for these birds, and until they are located in Wisconsin, they will be monitored. Those who may not choose to head to Wisconsin are also monitored, and depending on where they decide to land their movements are watched by the tracking team and then WCEP members decide if action might be necessary to bring them back into the flock.

Next time around, we'll talk with Joe Duff and also Don and Paula Lounsbury, who provide the top cover safety net that is such an important part of each year's migration.

Thanks for listening to Whooper Happenings #41!


Both views of the 7 chicks are with pilot Brooke Pennypacker as they approached the Dunnellon Airport on 1/22/09.


Download | Duration: 00:14:36

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