Greetings all!

The following report is forwarded with permission from Tom Stehn, USFWS biologist and US Whooping Crane Coordinator.

Where applicable, CWS stands for Canadian Wildlife Service; USFWS is US Fish and Wildlife Service. Crane monitoring involves cooperative efforts and support by both countries, plus many volunteers and non-profit organizations along the way.

Anyone wanting to contact Tom about the report or the whooping crane projects can reach him via email at: tom_stehn@fws.gov. Other information, including archived copies of these reports, can be found at the Texas Whooping Crane web site at http://www.ccbirding.com/

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The injured Lobstick juvenile is still at Aransas as of May 11. It was located today on the portion of its territory on Bludworth Island directly across from Dunham Bay. It is looking much better and foraging on its own, but is still holding its head at a slightly abnormal angle. Its injury has apparently kept it from migrating.

Date # cranes estimated present at Aransas
March 23 182 + 32 = 214
Apparently only the Matagorda County juvenile has migrated.
April 6 130 + 27 = 157
April 13 27 + 7 = 34
April 27 0 + 1 = 1
May 11 0 + 1 = 1

Notes: The first crane to migrate was believed to be the juvenile that wintered in Matagorda County, Texas with sandhills. It was last seen in Matagorda County on March 19.

The last crane remaining at Aransas through May 11 is the injured Lobstick juvenile.

Peak flock size in the 2004-05 winter equalled 183 adults + 34 chicks = 217.

One adult and one juvenile died at Aransas during the winter, leaving the spring, 2005 flock size estimated at 215. 214 of them had initiated migration between March 19 and April 27.

Tom Stehn
Whooping Crane Coordinator
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Aransas NWR
P.O. Box 100
Austwell, TX 77950
(361) 286-3559 Ext. 221
fax (361) 286-3722
E:mail: tom_stehn@fws.gov
  
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Patty Waits Beasley
Corpus Christi, TX
email: patty@ccbirding.com
web:  http://www.ccbirding.com/