Journey South With Endangered Whooping Cranes Led by Ultralights


Welcome! Year NINE in the historic conservation project to reintroduce Whooping Cranes to eastern North America is nearing takeoff. A record 23 hatch-year 2009 chicks for the new Eastern flock are now in "Flight School" at Wisconsin's Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. Just weeks from now they must be ready for their thrilling but risky first migration.

They'll depart in October behind ultralight airplane "parents" that show the way on their first migration to Florida. Besides the largest number of chicks in the project's history, this year's migration includes live on-the-scene viewing with the world's CraneCam, thanks to Operation Migration!

An additional 10 young whooper chicks are being costume-reared for a different flight plan. Come autumn, these 10 will be released among the older adult Whooping cranes summering on the Wisconsin refuge. Experts hope the chicks will follow the older cranes all the way to Florida, thus learning a lifelong migration route. They are part of the Direct Autumn Release (DAR) program, now in its fifth year, for adding young cranes to this growing new flock.

Will all the chicks make the journey safely? How long will this year's migration take? What highlights and lowlights await on the 1,285-mile journey through seven states? You'll find out on Journey South this fall. Read on for how to participate. We're glad you're here!

How to Track the Whooping Crane Migration http://www.learner.org/jnorth/tm/crane/09/Welcome.html


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