ENVIRONMENT REPORT -May 17, 2002: Whooping Crane Recovery Project
By Cynthia Kirk
This is the VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT.
Scientists are trying to create the first migrating group of whooping cranes in the eastern United States in more
than one-hundred years. Migrating birds fly long distances to different areas of the country when the seasons
change. For example, they fly from cold areas to warm areas to spend the winter.
The migration project is designed to increase the number of whooping cranes. These
large, beautiful birds are in danger of disappearing.
Cranes are one of the most threatened families of birds in the world. Whooping
cranes are the rarest of all cranes. There are fewer than three-hundred-fifty birds left
in the world.
Whooping cranes do not produce many baby birds. That makes it difficult to replace
birds killed by hunting, natural events, animals, accidents and disease. Scientists
hope the migration effort will lead to increased reproduction among whooping
cranes.
In October, researchers trained eight young whooping cranes to fly behind small
airplanes. The planes led the endangered birds on their first migration. They flew
from the middle western state of Wisconsin to a protected area in the southeastern
state of Florida for the winter.
The cranes and planes arrived in Florida in December, following a fifty-day flight.
They flew across seven states. One crane died during the trip. Two others were
killed by animals in Florida.
The five remaining whooping cranes returned to the
Necedah (neh-SEE-dah) National Wildlife Refuge in
Wisconsin on their own last month. The return north
was the cranes’
first unassisted migration. They were
guided only by their natural abilities.
Scientists from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the International
Crane Foundation have been studying the birds since they began their northern
migration. They say their flight back to Wisconsin was quicker than anyone had
expected. It took ten days and covered almost two-thousand kilometers.
Scientists had known that existing wild whooping cranes were able to fly great distances during migration. But
they did not know if they could teach young whooping cranes to migrate.
The scientists will observe these whooping cranes during the summer and as they migrate back south in the fall.
Scientists hope the effort will teach them more about how to save the endangered birds.
This VOA Special English ENVIRONMENT REPORT was written by Cynthia Kirk.
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Wisconsin is at the top of
the red dotted line, Florida
is at the bottom
