Whooping Crane Chicks Hatched in Louisiana in April Reach One Month Mark This Week

The first whooping crane chicks hatched in Louisiana since 1939 continue to be reared by the mated pair that nested and conceived them one month after they hatched in Jefferson Davis Parish.

The initial hatch occurred April 11 with the second chick hatched two days later.

The hatchings, the first seen in Louisiana’s wild since 1939, represent another step forward in the program established in February of 2011 when the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) reintroduced whooping cranes back into the state at the White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area (WLWCA) in Vermilion Parish.

“The family remains in the area where they nested and the chicks are growing fast,’’ said LDWF biologist Sara Zimorski, who leads the Louisiana whooping crane project. “We’re excited it has gone this well so far. The last month has been thrilling as our team has watched the process of the adults rearing the chicks.

“We’d like to thank our many partners who have helped with the project, especially the landowners and farmers in southwest Louisiana who have worked hand-in-hand with us as the birds nest on some of their property.’’

LDWF has partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Service and the Louisiana Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit to return the species to the state. Project funding comes from LDWF Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge funds, State Wildlife Grants Program, and private/corporate donations, which are facilitated by the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Foundation. Chevron has been a major corporate donor in the program. 

The adults paired earlier this winter and nested and produced eggs for the first time in mid-March. The female is 4 years old and the male just 3 years old. 

Once abundant in Louisiana in the 1800s, the whooping cranes dwindled to two in 1945 and had disappeared by 1950 in the state.

Bob Love, a former LDWF Administrator of Coastal and Nongame Resources who initially secured approval for the whooping crane reintroduction project in 2010, said the hatchings represent a major milestone for the endeavor. It also shows, he said, that southwest Louisiana’s coastal prairie habitat coupled with the abundance of flooded crawfish and rice fields appears to be good breeding ground for whooping cranes.

“To have the successful reproduction at this early stage of the project is monumental,’’ said Love, who oversaw the project before retiring from LDWF in March. “It demonstrates how important the site-species relationship is for success. The critical habitat for the whooping crane to successfully reproduce is shallow water on that fertile prairie. In southwest Louisiana, we have that type habitat. It’s a massive habitat base that doesn’t exist in such quantities anywhere else in North America.’’

LDWF Secretary Charlie Melancon said the successful hatching is another example of Louisiana leading the way in helping imperiled species come back from the brink.

“This is not only significant for whooping crane reintroduction in Louisiana but for everywhere,’’ Melancon said. “We’re all working for the same goal and that is to restore a magnificent bird that was once plentiful. What our team has been able to demonstrate is a positive path to restore this species.’’

Whooping cranes in Louisiana are designated as a non-essential, experimental population (NEP) under the provisions of the Endangered Species Act. This designation and its implementing regulation were developed to be more compatible with routine human activities in the reintroduction area. The whooping crane is protected under the federal Endangered Species and Migratory Bird Treaty Acts and by Louisiana state law.

The initial cohort of birds received in 2011 marked the first presence of whooping cranes in the wild in Louisiana since 1950. 

The WLWCA location in Vermilion Parish provides temporary shelter for the birds before their release into the wild. The cranes which make up the Louisiana population were raised at the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Laurel, Md., and flown to Louisiana by the Windway Capital Corporation. 

Anyone encountering a whooping crane is advised to observe the bird from a distance and to report their sighting to LDWF (http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/webform/whooping-crane-reporting-form). 

Whooping cranes are large-bodied, white birds similar to white ibis, white pelicans, and wood storks, all of which must be distinguished from legally-hunted snow geese. However, a red head and black facial markings along with a height of five feet and a wingspan of 7-8 feet make them very distinctive. In flight, Whooping cranes display black wing tips and fully extended neck and legs, which extend well beyond the tail. 

Juvenile whooping cranes are primarily white with some cinnamon-brown feathers remaining on their body, primarily on their head and neck. Their wing tips are black like an adult, but they lack the red head. 

Anyone witnessing suspicious activity involving harassment or shooting of whooping cranes is advised to report that information to LDWF’s Enforcement Division by calling 1-800-442-2511 or using the tip411 program, which may offer a cash reward for information leading to arrests or convictions. To use the tip411 program, citizens can text LADWF and their tip to 847411 or download the "LADWF Tips" iPhone app from the Apple iTunes store free of charge. Citizen Observer, the tip411 provider, uses technology that removes all identifying information before LDWF receives the text so that LDWF cannot identify the sender.  

Additional information on LDWF’s whooping crane project is available at http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/wildlife/whooping.