Catalogue Search | MBRL
Are you sure you want to remove the book from the shelf?
{{itemTitle}}
130
result(s) for
"Whooping crane."
Sort by:
A chorus of cranes : the cranes of North America and the world
\"Accompanied by the stunning photography of Mangelsen, Johnsgard details the natural history, biology and conservation issues surrounding the abundant sandhill crane and the endangered whopping crane in North America\"-- Provided by publisher.
Book
Whooping Crane
A general interest book of nature photography focused on a single, celebrated species emblematic of conservation efforts, with a potentially international audience of those interested in wildlife, birds, endangered species, and outdoor photography.
eBook
The past and future role of conservation science in saving biodiversity
Global biodiversity losses continue despite tremendous growth in the volume of conservation science and many local successes. Research that can achieve conservation science's aims—arresting declines in biodiversity and preventing extinctions—is therefore of ever greater importance. Here, we ask whether conservation science, as currently performed, is progressing in such a way as to maximize its impact. We present a simple framework for how effective conservation research could progress, from identifying problems to diagnosing their proximate and ultimate causes, and from proposing, to designing, implementing, and testing responses. We then demonstrate that for three well‐known examples—South Asian vultures, whooping cranes, and bycatch of procellariform seabirds—published studies appear to follow this sequence, with considerable benefits. However, for a representative sample of the wider conservation literature, we find no evidence of such a progression. Instead, the vast majority of papers remain focused on describing the state of nature or on mechanisms directly causing changes, with very little research on designing or implementing conservation responses. This lack of research on the sorts of questions that might most help conservation science deliver its stated mission strongly suggests we will struggle to translate the huge increase in research activity into real‐world benefits.
Journal Article
Delineating and identifying long-term changes in the whooping crane
Defining and identifying changes to seasonal ranges of migratory species is required for effective conservation. Historic sightings of migrating whooping cranes (Grus americana) have served as sole source of information to define a migration corridor in the Great Plains of North America (i.e., Canadian Prairies and United States Great Plains) for this endangered species. We updated this effort using past opportunistic sightings from 1942-2016 (n = 5,055) and more recent (2010-2016) location data from 58 telemetered birds (n = 4,423) to delineate migration corridors that included 50%, 75%, and 95% core areas. All migration corridors were well defined and relatively compact, with the 95% core corridor averaging 294 km wide, although it varied approximately ±40% in width from 170 km in central Texas to 407 km at the international border of the United States and Canada. Based on historic sightings and telemetry locations, we detected easterly movements in locations over time, primarily due to locations west of the median shifting east. This shift occurred from northern Oklahoma to central Saskatchewan at an average rate of 1.2 km/year (0.3-2.8 km/year). Associated with this directional shift was a decrease in distance of locations from the median in the same region averaging -0.7 km/year (-0.3--1.3 km/year), suggesting a modest narrowing of the migration corridor. Changes in the corridor over the past 8 decades suggest that agencies and organizations interested in recovery of this species may need to modify where conservation and recovery actions occur. Whooping cranes showed apparent plasticity in their migratory behavior, which likely has been necessary for persistence of a wetland-dependent species migrating through the drought-prone Great Plains. Behavioral flexibility will be useful for whooping cranes to continue recovery in a future of uncertain climate and land use changes throughout their annual range.
Journal Article
Migrating Whooping Cranes avoid wind-energy infrastructure when selecting stopover habitat
Electricity generation from renewable-energy sources has increased dramatically worldwide in recent decades. Risks associated with wind-energy infrastructure are not well understood for endangered Whooping Cranes (Grus americana) or other vulnerable Crane populations. From 2010 to 2016, we monitored 57 Whooping Cranes with remote-telemetry devices in the United States Great Plains to determine potential changes in migration distribution (i.e., avoidance) caused by presence of wind-energy infrastructure. During our study, the number of wind towers tripled in the Whooping Crane migration corridor and quadrupled in the corridor’s center. Median distance of Whooping Crane locations from nearest wind tower was 52.1 km, and 99% of locations were >4.3 km from wind towers. A habitat selection analysis revealed that Whooping Cranes used areas ≤5.0 km (95% confidence interval [CI] 4.8–5.4) from towers less than expected (i.e., zone of influence) and that Whooping Cranes were 20 times (95% CI 14–64) more likely to use areas outside compared to adjacent to towers. Eighty percent of Whooping Crane locations and 20% of wind towers were located in areas with the highest relative probability of Whooping Crane use based on our model, which comprised 20% of the study area. Whooping Cranes selected for these places, whereas developers constructed wind infrastructure at random relative to desirable Whooping Crane habitat. As of early 2020, 4.6% of the study area and 5.0% of the highest-selected Whooping Crane habitat were within the collective zone of influence. The affected area equates to habitat loss ascribed to wind-energy infrastructure; losses from other disturbances have not been quantified. Continued growth of the Whooping Crane population during this period of wind infrastructure construction suggests no immediate population-level consequences. Chronic or lag effects of habitat loss are unknown but possible for long-lived species. Preferentially constructing future wind infrastructure outside of the migration corridor or inside of the corridor at sites with low probability of Whooping Crane use would allow for continued wind-energy development in the Great Plains with minimal additional risk to highly selected habitat that supports recovery of this endangered species.
Journal Article
Sandhill and Whooping Cranes
Driving west from Lincoln to Grand Island, Nebraska, Paul A. Johnsgard remarks, is like driving backward in time. “I suspect,” he says, “that the migrating cranes of a pre–ice age period some ten million years ago would fully understand every nuance of the crane conversation going on today along the Platte.” Johnsgard has spent nearly a half century observing cranes, from a yearly foray to Nebraska’s Platte River valley to see the spring migration, to pilgrimages to the birds’ wintering grounds in Arizona and nesting territory in Alaska. In this book he draws from his own extensive experience as well as the latest science to offer a richly detailed and deeply felt account of the ecology of sandhill and whooping cranes and the wetlands in which they live. Incorporating current information on changing migration patterns, population trends, and breeding ranges, Johnsgard explains the life cycle of the crane, as well as the significance of these species to our natural world. He also writes frankly of the uncertain future of these majestic birds, as cranes and their habitats face the effects of climate change and increasing human population pressures. Illustrated with the author’s own ink drawings and containing a detailed guide to crane-viewing sites in the United States and Canada, this book is at once an invaluable reference and an eloquent testimony to how much these birds truly mean.
eBook
Whooping Crane Chick Survival in the Reintroduced Eastern Migratory Population
The reintroduced Eastern Migratory Population (EMP) of Whooping Cranes (Grus americana) has exhibited appropriate breeding behavior, including pair formation, territory defense, nest building, and fertile egg production. However, recruitment has been lower than what is needed for a self‐sustaining population due to high chick mortality. During 2006–2023, 194 chicks hatched in the EMP, with only 36 surviving to fledging. For the population to succeed without continued releases of captive‐reared individuals, we must develop management strategies that increase recruitment to a level above mortality rates. We examined apparent weekly survival data of wild‐hatched Whooping Crane chicks collected via aerial and ground surveys using radio telemetry from 2006 to 2023. In this study, we explored relationships between chick survival and a host of potentially impactful predictor variables including parental experience, parental life history, habitat, ecoregion, weather, and climate, as well as nest and clutch characteristics using Cox Proportional Hazard Regression Models. Our results indicate that a chick without a sibling has an increased probability of survival. Survival probability also increased with collective parental experience and warm days (> 32°C) during the first 4 weeks after hatch. Our data indicate that parental experience is a reliable predictor of recruitment. Adult survival may therefore be indirectly linked with low chick survival as experienced adults are too often lost from this population. Additionally, our results suggest that efforts to collect a single egg from two‐egg nests may improve weekly survival of Whooping Crane chicks. The reintroduced Eastern Migratory Population (EMP) of Whooping Cranes (Grus americana) has experienced recruitment rates lower than what is needed for a self‐sustaining population due to high colt mortality. We examined weekly survival data of wild‐hatched Whooping Crane colts from 2006 to 2023 and explored relationships with predictor variables including parental experience, habitat, ecoregion, weather, and nest or clutch characteristics. Whether a colt had a sibling, if parents had more experience raising young, and warm days during the first 4 weeks after hatch were reliable predictors of crane colt survival.
Journal Article
Delineating and identifying long-term changes in the whooping crane (Grus americana) migration corridor
Defining and identifying changes to seasonal ranges of migratory species is required for effective conservation. Historic sightings of migrating whooping cranes (Grus americana) have served as sole source of information to define a migration corridor in the Great Plains of North America (i.e., Canadian Prairies and United States Great Plains) for this endangered species. We updated this effort using past opportunistic sightings from 1942-2016 (n = 5,055) and more recent (2010-2016) location data from 58 telemetered birds (n = 4,423) to delineate migration corridors that included 50%, 75%, and 95% core areas. All migration corridors were well defined and relatively compact, with the 95% core corridor averaging 294 km wide, although it varied approximately ±40% in width from 170 km in central Texas to 407 km at the international border of the United States and Canada. Based on historic sightings and telemetry locations, we detected easterly movements in locations over time, primarily due to locations west of the median shifting east. This shift occurred from northern Oklahoma to central Saskatchewan at an average rate of 1.2 km/year (0.3-2.8 km/year). Associated with this directional shift was a decrease in distance of locations from the median in the same region averaging -0.7 km/year (-0.3--1.3 km/year), suggesting a modest narrowing of the migration corridor. Changes in the corridor over the past 8 decades suggest that agencies and organizations interested in recovery of this species may need to modify where conservation and recovery actions occur. Whooping cranes showed apparent plasticity in their migratory behavior, which likely has been necessary for persistence of a wetland-dependent species migrating through the drought-prone Great Plains. Behavioral flexibility will be useful for whooping cranes to continue recovery in a future of uncertain climate and land use changes throughout their annual range.
Journal Article
Factors Affecting Captive Whooping Crane Egg Fertility
The whooping crane (Grus americana) has been managed in captivity since the 1960s following a substantial genetic bottleneck in the wild population. Through major ex situ conservation efforts, there are 158 whooping cranes managed in North American institutions and chicks are released annually into the wild. Current reintroduction goals for the whooping crane however, are impeded by poor reproduction within the ex situ population, in part because of low egg fertility. Development of improved management techniques to overcome low egg fertility requires a better understanding of factors that influence egg fertility. We collected data for eggs laid at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center from 2005–2014 (n = 438 eggs; n = 23 pairs). We constructed 5 sets of generalized linear mixed-models, with a Bernoulli-distributed response variable (fertile or infertile), to address the effects of egg-specific variables (month laid, sequence, and clutch order of the egg), life-history events of the male and female (age, rearing method, wing condition, age at first pairing, age at current pairing, and female age at first laying), pair-specific characteristics (kinship, years paired, chick-rearing experience, and previous pairings), and captive management decisions (inclusion in the artificial insemination program and pair experience chick-rearing) on the probability of egg fertility. Our results indicate that female-specific factors (especially age, age at current pairing, and wing status) and pair-specific factors of kinship, chick-rearing experience, copulation, and inclusion in the artificial insemination program influenced fertile egg production. Specifically, the younger a female is when paired with her current social mate, the higher probability that her eggs will be fertile. Furthermore, high kinship reduced fertility, whereas chick-rearing experience and artificial insemination of females with a donor male other than her social mate increased fertility. Further research on mate selection and reproductive mechanisms is needed to better understand egg laying and egg fertility in the whooping crane.
Journal Article