Wouldn't it be great if this fourth attempt to reestablish whooping cranes were successful? [View All]

[Stinky The Clown]

Whooping cranes head back to Louisiana

Conservationists hope fourth attempt to reintroduce endangered bird to the wild will be a success.

Gwyneth Dickey Zakaib

Officials with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) are finalizing plans to release a small flock of whooping cranes (Grus americana) in a protected wetland, in what could be a promising step towards long-term viability for an endangered species. The move would represent the return of a long-lost native — absent from the state for more than 60 years.



Officials say that ten captive-bred birds will be flown by plane from their Maryland hatching ground to the White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area in Vermilion Parish, southwestern Louisiana, as early as next week. Once released into the wild, they will be monitored by the LDWF. The department hopes to establish a non-migratory flock of whooping cranes in White Lake over the next ten years to help ensure the survival of the species.

The effort is the latest in a series of attempts to increase the numbers and range of the striking 1.5-metre tall white-and-black birds, whose population dwindled to just 21 individuals in 1941 as a result of habitat loss and hunting.

Conservationists' efforts over the past 35 years have yielded a modest recovery. The last remaining natural flock, the Aransas–Wood Buffalo population, which migrates between Canada and Texas, has bounced back to around 260 birds.

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