 |
||||||||
 |
||||||||
|
||||||||
|
Weather delays cranes' flight
By ALEX LEARY, Times Staff Writer
CHASSAHOWIZTKA -- After three days of poor weather, including a tornado threat, the whooping cranes migrating to Citrus County made a 65-mile flight Monday over Indiana and have now completed one-third of the journey. "It was a bright, sunny day, but very bumpy," said pilot Joe Duff, who is leading the cranes in an ultralight aircraft as part of an experiment to reintroduce the endangered species to eastern North America. "We're slowly but surely making progress," Duff said by cell phone in Jennings County, Ind. "Now we just need decent weather." That has become a familiar refrain. Since departing Oct. 13 from Wisconsin, the crew has spent most of the time on the ground. The flock of 16 cranes last flew on Thursday. "Our families are wondering if we'll be home for Christmas," project spokeswoman Heather Ray said, only half joking. "We'll just take it one day at a time." Sunday provided a bit of a scare as a tornado warning was issued for central Indiana. "You could hear the sirens," Duff said. "It was pretty freaky." Additional stakes were pounded into the ground to keep the cranes' pen from moving and the wings of the aircraft -- four ultralights are being used this trip -- were removed. Conditions improved by Monday morning; and the pilots decided to give it a shot, brushing the leaves off the aircraft wings. They departed Hendricks County at 8:39 a.m. and landed in Jennings County about two hours later. Only 13 of the cranes took to the air. Three had flown farther on Thursday and were transported Monday by truck to the new location, about 60 miles north of the Kentucky state line. The cranes have now traveled a total of 432 miles; they have about 800 to go. Last year at this time, the inaugural flock of whooping cranes had reached Tennessee. Those cranes made it to Florida in 50 days and later returned north on their own. Two years ago Monday, a group of 11 sandhill cranes had reached St. Martins Marsh Aquatic Preserve in Crystal River. The sandhills, closely related to their endangered cousins, were used to test the novel migration technique. Even while still in the egg, the birds were exposed to the sound of an ultralight aircraft. When they hatched, they were quickly acclimated to the craft, thinking as if it were their mother. The process is known as imprinting and has been perfected by the researchers. The birds must be taught to fly south because there are no wild migratory whooping cranes, except the five that made the trip last year, in eastern North America. The goal is to establish a migrating colony of at least 25 breeding pairs by 2020. In future years, young birds may be placed with those having migratory experience, eliminating the need for ultralight aircraft. Whooping cranes were nearly extinct in the 1940s as unregulated hunting and habitat destruction took a toll. Today, despite efforts to protect the species, there are fewer than 400 in North America. -- Alex Leary can be reached at (352) 564-3623 or leary@sptimes.com.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 
|
Citrus Times Greg Hamilton Letters |
