Posted on 01/23/2010 6:42:38 AM PST by JoeProBono
As the early-morning fog cleared at the Dunnellon airport in Marion County, Fla., and the temperatures slowly rose, 8-year-old Edon Palchar waited with his family to see whooping cranes for the very first time. The cranes, guided by an ultralight aircraft, were on their way to their winter homes at a wildlife refuge in Florida this week.
Experts say there are only 350 of these rare birds left in the world. Their arrival is becoming an annual spectacle that draws thousands of bird lovers.
Watching Live And On The Web
For Edon Palchar, the coolest thing about the cranes is that "they can fly and just follow the ultralight." It was worth it, he said, to wake up early and stand outside in the cold to see them.
Coming to watch the cranes fly over has become a yearly routine for 82-year-old Florence Scaron.
"I watch these whooping cranes from the time they are hatched," she says, "and when they take off from Wisconsin until they come down here. And ... I watch them every day on the Internet."
The drone of an engine broke the morning silence. Cameras clicked as the aircraft, trailed by 10 slender, white birds with black wingtips, passed overhead.
From Zero To More Than 100
"There were zero [cranes] in eastern North America when we started this project," says Liz Condie of Operation Migration, the nonprofit group that has been using aircraft to train these cranes to migrate since 2001. "So over a hundred is pretty good in nine years."
Each year, Operation Migration pilots lead a new flock of young birds from Wisconsin to two Florida wildlife refuges.
"There's nothing that explains the feeling of accomplishment that you get," Condie says, "when we finally release these birds here in Florida, knowing that we're adding to a population that 10 years ago didn't exist."
Safe Travels
Sarah Zamorsky, a biologist with the International Crane Foundation, says the birds are starting on what should be a lifelong tradition.
"They just have to be shown the way down south one time," she says, “whether it's with ultralights or older birds. Then they know how to go back in the spring. Usually in late March, early April, they'll just decide one day is the right day and they'll head back north."
And as this year's trip wraps up, the Operation Migration crew looks at it as a success. All the young birds made it south safely, which will help to start a new generation of a species still very much at risk.
A large crowd gathered at the Dunnellon Airport Tuesday morning to see one of the newest flocks of whooping cranes on their first migration to Florida. As Vic Micolucci reports, the latest trip is being considered a success by the team of experts working as part of Operation Migration.
very cool. but it bet that ultralight has an “obama/biden” sticker on it.
Just prayin’ the pain is not in vain.
It won't be long till they show up. I'll get pics.
I saw a movie a couple of years ago about a girl who did the same thing with geese. It was soo cool I had a tear in my eye. The geese flying in formation and honking behind the ultra light. Great Flick!
THey made a movie about this, “Fly Away Home”.
This fall a flock of cranes flew over Springfield MO. Gracefully they broke out of formation, gathering to loop and dive in extreme slow motion. Their wings glittered in the sun. One of the most amazing sights I ever witnessed.
Flock of geese flying with their human friend in his ultra light airplane
Cranes are awesome. We have been blessed to have the International Crane Foundation here in Wisconsin. Operation Migration is an amazing endeavor. All involved should be proud of their accomplishments and deserve our thanks.
We’re pretty close to their flight path.
When I was growing up we had a landing strip on the top of our hill so my Dad could take off and land his plane. All it was was a flat stretch of cropland on top of the hill. When we hayed, the landing strip was the first place we picked the bales up from... (Hay bales are hard to see from a bird’s eye view, yet they are remarkably solid and running into one while landing a plane should be avoided at all costs.)
It still shows up as a landing strip on topographic maps, even though sometimes it’s now covered in corn and even Capt. Sully would be well advised to not attempt a landing there...
A few years back the Operation Migration ground support stopped by to ask permission to overnight on our land, if they needed, depending on variables such as weather and how far they could get each day. Turned out they didn’t need to, but it was still pretty neat...
Yup! You nailed it. Have you seen it? It is a feel good movie. LOL
The plane-trained cranes fly mainly over the Paynes Prairie Preserve.
("By George, I think she's GOT it!")
Cheers!
i was up in alaska out on the tundra and they had a ton of cranes there. i guess they are not the same kind?
Whooping Crane
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