Whooping Cranes

These seven whooping cranes are in a field beside Priceville High School in Decatur, Alabama, a couple of miles from Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge where they are wintering. The brown-headed young bird, #69-16, called Zion, named after the National Park in celebration of the National Park Service’s centennial, was hatched and raised by foster parent whooping cranes at the International Crane Foundation in Wisconsin in 2016. In the fall, she was released into the wild in Wisconsin near an adult pair, the goal being that she would associate with them and follow them when they migrated. She never really bonded with them, instead migrating to Wheeler for the winter with a group of sandhill cranes. At Wheeler, she has begun associating with other whooping cranes. (IMG_4734)