Reintroduction of a Migratory Flock of
Whooping Cranes in the Eastern United States
Reintroduction of whooping cranes to the eastern U.S. began in 2000. The purpose of the reintroduction is to establish a population of whooping cranes that breed in Wisconsin and migrate
to the southeast for the winter.
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Pair of whooping cranes at the International Crane Foundation in Baraboo, Wisconsin. Photo by USFWS; Joel Trick |
The Whooping Crane
Eastern Partnership, a group of non-profit
organizations and government agencies is conducting the reintroduction project. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife
Service is one member of the Partnership.
Project components:
• hatching and rearing captive-bred whooping cranes at USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
• training young whooping cranes to follow ultralight aircraft and then leading the young cranes on their first migration flight to Florida - Operation Migration, Inc.
• tracking the wild whooping cranes that were released during the previous years - International Crane Foundation
The Endangered Species Act Process that Established the Whooping Crane Reintroduction Project
To
reintroduce whooping cranes to eastern North America, we (the
Service) formally proposed establishing a Nonessential Experimental
Population by publishing the proposal in the Federal Register. The reintroduction proposal was identified as the preferred alternative
in a corresponding Environmental Assessment. The Federal Register publication of the proposal
and Notice of Availability of the Environmental Assessment opened a public comment period. After the comment period closed, we reviewed and analyzed all the comments that were received, then prepared a final rule based on that analysis. The Final Rule establishing
the Nonessential Experimental Population was published in
the Federal Register on June 26, 2001. Links to the
Final Rule and Environmental Assessment are below.
The Final Rule designates a whooping crane Nonessential
Experimental Population within a 20-state area in the eastern
U.S. We believe the Nonessential Experimental Population status
will adequately protect this whooping crane population, while
still allowing the presence of the cranes to be compatible
with routine human activities in the proposed reintroduction
area.
Establishment
of a Nonessential Experimental Population of Whooping Cranes
in the Eastern United States - Final Rule (pdf
file - 15 pages; 178KB)
Final Environmental Assessment:
Proposed Reintroduction of a Migratory Flock of Whooping Cranes
in the Eastern United States
Map
of Nonessential Experimental Population Area
Whooping Crane Reintroduction: Questions
and Answers about the Final Rule and Environmental Assessment
Additional information
Whooping
Crane Eastern Partnership - Partners working to reintroduce
Whooping Cranes to the Eastern United States along with information
about reintroduction activities, crane biology, and the history of whooping
cranes in North America. This site has detailed and current information about the whooping crane reintroduction project.
Regulatory Information Whooping Crane
(USFWS Endangered Species Website)
Operation Migration, Inc.: daily updates during spring and summer training for the young whooping cranes and
during the fall migration to Florida.
International Crane Foundation: updates from the team of biologist who track the whooping cranes that have been reintroduced since 2001.
Wisconsin Whooping Crane Management Plan
Midwest Endangered Species Home
