de it their mission to save the whooping crane and over the last 60 years, the recovery effort has brought this species back from the brink of extinction
Whooping Cranes Were Here…History of Whooping Cranes in Louisiana
- 1890’s. Records indicate “large numbers” of both whooping cranes and sandhill cranes on wet prairies year-round and whooping cranes also used coastal locations in winter.
- 1890’s-1920. Conversion of prairies to mechanized agriculture leads to both whooping and sandhill crane numbers declining in the prairie region.
- 1918. 12 whooping cranes shot north of Sweet Lake. Last official record of whooping cranes on the Louisiana prairies.
- 1930’s. Trappers report whooping crane nesting activity and young in the freshwater marshes north of White Lake.
- May 1939. Biologist John J. Lynch (U.S. Bureau of Biological Survey (pre USFWS)) sights 13 whooping cranes north of White Lake. Two of the cranes are “young-of-the-year.” This record confirms a resident colony of breeding whooping cranes in Louisiana. This is the last record of the species breeding in the wild in the United States prior to experimental and captive-raised whooping cranes hatching several eggs and fledging chicks starting in 2000 and 2002, respectively.
- Late 1930’s-early 1940’s. Last records of wintering whooping cranes on southwest Louisiana’s chenier ridges and in brackish and saltwater marshes near the coast.
- August 1940. Hurricane and flood from associated rainfall scatters the resident White Lake whooping cranes. Only 6 cranes return.
- November 1941. One of the “lost” cranes of White Lake is found in Evangeline Parish after the storm. She is captured and donated to the Audubon Park Zoo in New Orleans. The bird is named “Josephine;” for many years, she was the only breeding female whooping crane in captivity.
- 1941-1945. White Lake whooping crane flock loses 1 bird each year...only 2 cranes remain in 1945.
- 1947. Only 1 whooping crane remains at White Lake.
- March 1950. John J Lynch and others chase and capture the lone White Lake crane, which is transported to Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Texas.
- February 2011. Nonessential, experimental population established at White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area.
** Based on Louisiana whooping crane chronology compiled by Dr. Gay Gomez, McNeese State University**
Whooping Crane Facts
- are the tallest N. American bird. Males height reaches up to 5 ft.
- have a wingspan of up to 7 ft.
- are all white except for black feathers on the tips of their wings; and have dark olive-gray bills, which lighten in color during breeding season.
- are cinnamon brown when immature and take on a mottled appearance as their white feather bases begin to extend.
- live approximately 22-24 years in the wild.
- are omnivorous. Summer forage includes frogs, fish, rodents, small birds, and berries. Winter feeding centers on blue crabs and clams.
- form life-long, monogamous pairs, though they will re-pair after the death of mate.
- make a spring migration to Wood Buffalo National Park in Saskatchewan, Canada. They occupy approximately the same area within the breeding territory each year.
- share parental duties, such as egg incubation and brood-rearing, between mates.
- begin an autumn migration in September and reach their Texas Gulf Coast destination by late October or early November.
- today about 400 whooping cranes survive in three populations in the wild, and about 150 individuals in captivity.