The only remaining wild population of
whooping cranes has begun its migration from Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada to the the Texas coast (principally,
Aransas National Wildlife Refuge).
According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the current count of cranes that have successfully made the journey and are now in Texas is
49 cranes (45 adults & 4 juveniles). More will be arriving in the coming months;
as of October 29, 2003, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service reported that
approximately 75% of the whoopers are still in the process of migrating southward.
For more information on whooping cranes, visit the following websites:
And don't forget the
whooping crane boat tours available along the Texas coast!
As an aside, I would swear I observed two adult whooping cranes over my northeast San Antonio home about a week or so ago -- when the last cold front successfully pushed through the city. I didn't have an chance to grab my camera to confirm the identification, but they appeared much larger than Canada geese or sandhill cranes.