Population Genetic Structure in the Eastern Population of Greater Sandhill Cranes (Grus canadensis tabida)

The Sandhill Crane (SACR; Grus canadensis) is the most populous of the 15 extant crane species. Their breeding range covers the majority of the continental U.S. and Canada and extends into Cuba and Eastern Siberia. Wintering areas are much more condensed and range typically from the southern and southeastern U.S. into Mexico (Meine and Archibald 1996). While not the most abundant population, the Eastern Population (EP) of greater SACRs (G. c. tabida) is likely the currently fastest growing (3.9% annual average growth rate; Amundsen and Johnson 2010). It is estimated to comprise approximately 60,000 birds (Kruse et al. 2012).