Flyover 2010 Video   recorded by Gayla Kittendorf   (approx. size: 26MB),

    Crane Pen Video 01/31/2010     (approx. size: 24MB),

The Class of 2009 arrived at the St. Marks NWR pen site on Jan. 13, 2010. Staying with us this year are numbers 906, 908*, 910, 911, 912, 914*, 915*, 918, 925*, and 926*. For background information on each bird, visit Journey North. Thanks to everyone who show up for the St. Marks, FL flyover event!

Take this time to Give a Whoop!

THE WHOOPING CRANES ARE COMING St. Marks Arrival Flyover (map) Get your long and short sleeve t-shirts at the St. Marks Refuge Gift Shop in the Visitor Center now! The t-shirts will be available at the St. Marks Flyover this week.

Last year's class has begun their migration south. Following is last know location:

Class of 2009

Meet the Class of 2009 Half this class will be coming to St. Marks NWR and the other half to Chassahowitzka NWR. At this time, it is not known which of these chicks will be coming here.

Visit the Operation Migration website to get more information and find out how you can help the cranes reach St. Marks NWR. Or Give a WHOOP!

The class of 2008 will begin their migration soon and should be seen in the panhandle area. To report whooping crane sightings, visit the WCEP whooping crane observation webpage. But please do not approach the cranes!.

Give a WHOOP!

This fall, as Operation Migration leads their ninth generation of young Whooping cranes south with their ultralight aircraft, they will chalk up their 10,000th mile teaching a migration route to this endangered species!

For just $10 you too can show that you Give a WHOOP! Won't you please help, help Operation Migration so they can continue their wonderful wildlife conservation work? Give a WHOOP! and your name could be drawn for one of more than 200 thank you gifts — from t-shirts to a trip! If you "WHOOP" you'll be invited to OM's online WorldWide Give a WHOOP! celebration party.

Use the following link to Give a WHOOP!
http://www.operationmigration.org/contribute.htm
OR
http://www.operationmigration.org/GAWlandingpage.html
to read more about this fun, fun, fun event.

We know we can count on you, so we're sending our thanks in advance for caring enough to Give a WHOOP!

Your Craniac friends with the St. Marks Refuge Association and St. Marks NWR.

Class of 2009

Meet the Class of 2009. Half this class will be coming to St. Marks NWR and the other half to Chassahowitzka NWR. At this time, it is not known which of these chicks will be coming here.

Whooping Cranes have begun their migration north!

The seven whooping cranes wintering at the St. Marks NWR left on March 30th and began their journey north. As of April 7, five of our birds were in Illinois and one in Iowa. Unfortunately, #826 was found with multiple leg fractures and transported to a vet at the University of Illinois' Wildlife Medical Clinic in Urbana. It is unlikely that he will be returned to the population.

Update Apr 9,2009: Dr. Julia Whittington, who is a Clinical Assistant Professor with the Zoological Animal Medicine and Surgery at the Wildlife Medical Clinic in Urbana, IL reported that #826 did not survive.
Photos of 826

There are many ways you can help next year's class of cranes reach the St. Marks NWR. Please read the Invitation to Support Whooping Cranes below and visit the Operation Migration website to find out how.

Whooping Cranes have Arrived!!

(Click image)

St. Marks NWR at Last Joe Duff captured this shot as the 7 cranes glided down to Patuxent's Brian Clauss and Jane Chandler, who were in costume and standing between the two large ponds in the pen. The cranes are on the right side/middle of the image. Once they landed, Brian and Jane led them into the top-netted section (top center) where they'll be housed until their final health check. Each bird will be fitted with their permanent leg bands and transmitters during the health check so that they will only be handled one final time. Photo and text courtesy of Operation Migration.

Meet our new arrivals. Go to the Operation Migration – Class of 2008 and check out the St. Marks' Cohort — #805, 812, 813*, 826, 828, 829, and 830*.

(Click image)

The Whooping Crane's Blessing — 1000 students and teachers at Gilchrist Elementary in Tallahasse, Florida formed a whooping crane in honor of a small flock which arrived at their new home at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge the day after the project ended. The border design depicts the Seminole Indian symbol for "bird."
(Art For the Sky)

Whooping Cranes are Coming

The whooping cranes began their flight from Wisconsin to Florida on Friday, Oct. 17. Follow their progress, view photos, and more at Journey North. There are many ways you can help the cranes reach the St. Marks NWR. Please read the Invitation to Support Whooping Cranes below or visit the Operation Migration website to find out how.

Whooping cranes, named for their loud and penetrating unison calls, live and breed in wetland areas, where they feed on crabs, clams, frogs and aquatic plants. They are distinctive animals, standing five feet tall, with white bodies, black wing tips and red crowns on their heads.

The critically endangered whooping crane will be arriving at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge for the first time this December to spend the winter. With only a few hundred whooping cranes existing in the wild, these young cranes will need to learn to feed and protect themselves away from humans. Although they must remain hidden from us, learning about the amazing whooping cranes and their survival is important for refuge neighbors.

To support the cranes, the St. Marks Refuge Association invites all area civic groups and schools to donate to "Coins for Cranes." This project involves collecting spare change to sponsor a satellite camera with live action feed into the refuge Visitor Center at St. Marks NWR and sponsoring miles along the cranes' winter migration.

The civic group and class that raise the most money will receive a Crane Team certificate, personal visit from the Crane Research Team and a group photo to be displayed in the refuge Visitor Center. To participate, please contact:

Ms. Lori Nicholson
Education Specialist
(850)925-6121

The staff at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge (St. Marks NWR) was pleased to hear that The Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP) announced Thursday, February 7, 2008 that it plans to split the ultralight-led Class of 2008 cranes into two groups upon arrival in Florida this fall. One group will winter at Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), and the other group will winter at St. Marks NWR. Both refuges are on the Florida Gulf coast.

The decision comes after the loss in February 2007 of 17 of the 18 Class of 2006 whooping cranes in a severe storm at Chassahowitzka NWR. WCEP has spent the past year examining the circumstances of the deaths. While the loss resulted from a rare and severe storm, WCEP is exploring all options to safeguard against such a loss in the future. In making the decision to divide the next group of ultralight-led cranes between two winter sites, WCEP's highest priority concerns were maximizing first-year survival of young whooping cranes (including avoiding the catastrophic loss of a class group) and maximizing opportunities for the young cranes to socialize and form pair bonds on the winter grounds.

After studying potential alternative winter sites, WCEP identified St. Marks NWR as a suitable release site. The Chassahowitzka and St. Marks sites have different habitat characteristics and each meets many of WCEP's priority objectives for winter management of the cranes. Splitting the flock between Chassahowitzka and St. Marks meets the highest priority concerns for the safety and well-being of the young whooping cranes and offers an opportunity to learn more about what is best for these endangered birds. Evaluating the response of the cranes will improve WCEP's understanding of whooping crane ecology and inform future management.

The prospective wintering site at St. Marks NWR requires closing portions of Mensler Creek and Cow Creek and their surrounding marshes to all public access approximately December–April. The exact closure dates will depend on when the cranes arrive.

An international coalition of public and private organizations, WCEP is conducting the reintroduction project in an effort to return this endangered species to its historic range in eastern North America. This spring, there will be 76 migrating whooping cranes in the wild in eastern North America thanks to the efforts of WCEP and its many donors, partners and supporters.

For more information, go to WCEP's Web site at: http://www.bringbackthecranes.org
or Operation Migration: http://www.operationmigration.org.

The staff at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge is pleased to announce that we have received the Whooping Crane Pen construction permit and are preparing for a December arrival of the cranes. We appreciate all of the community support we have received for this. Several volunteers including the Wakulla High NJROTC filled sandbags to use as reef for the cranes to roost and tied together fencing material. The Refuge staff and volunteers spent several days in the marsh constructing the three acre pen.
Crane Pen Construction

The Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP) is responsible for bring the whooping cranes to Wakulla County. An international coalition of public and private orgaizations, WCEP is conducting the reintroduction project in an effort to return this endangered species to its historic range in eastern North America.

For more information go the WCEP's website at http://www.bringbackthecranes.org.

Crane Pen Construction
Wakulla High NJROTC Volunteers

Crane Pen Construction
Wakulla High NJROTC Volunteers

The Necedah National Wildlife Refuge is located 4 miles west of Necedah, WI; in the Great Central Wisconsin Swamp. Of special interest to the St. Marks NWR is Necedah's mission to protect and restore whooping cranes. It is from Necedah NWR that Whooping Cranes are coming to the St. Marks NWR.

Visit the photo gallery to view some photos from the '07 departure from Necedah NWR and the "Craniacs" gathering at 4:30 – 6:00 AM to watch the departure. For more photos and information about Nededah, visit the Friends of Necedah National Wildlife Refuge.

Ultralight-led Whooping Cranes Arrive at First Wintering Destination in Florida
(January 14, 2009)

Ultralight-led whooping crane migration set to begin October 10
(October 8, 2009)

First Whooping Cranes of the "Class of 2009" Arrive at Necedah National Wildlife Refuge
(June 26, 2009)

Visit Operation Migration's Photo Gallery.

St. Marks Arrival Flyover (map)
Track the Cranes progress
Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership
Operation Migration, Inc.
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
International Crane Foundation
USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
Friends of Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge
Friends of Necedah National Wildlife Refuge

Information and Ultralight photo courtesy of the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership