Whooping cranes migrate between the southern edge of the Northwest Territories and Texas. They travel a very long way!
These birds are often difficult to photograph as they are very shy and possessed of excellent hearing, so they are usually gone before you know they have been nearby. Generally, they just are not very gregarious; they like to keep to themselves in their pair bonds. Their nests are about five kilometres (three miles) apart from those of other cranes.
There are only about 500 whooping cranes in the wild, they migrate each year between wintering grounds at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Texas and their breeding grounds in Wood Buffalo National Park near Fort Smith, NWT.
Their numbers are very slowly improving after dropping to about 25 birds in the 1940s; their survival and growth has been helped along by protections that exist in both Northwest Territories and Texas.
Happy mid-week.
In the Net! - Pictures and Stories of Life 
I know of whooping cranes, but not about them. Interesting.
I didn’t know much about them either until I started working here. They are incredibly big, with a huge wingspan!
We have seen them fly over at very high altitude in our area. Majestic flyers at very high altitude, up to 1,950 m, they can be hard to spot. Thanks for sharing. Happy Wednesday Lynette. Allan
They apparently can cover huge distances in a single flight day, and of course they have quite a wingspan. Very impressive birds!
That is so scary to think that we almost lost this beautiful species. Glad they’re making a comeback. I hope people continue to be aware that they are endangered and support efforts to bring them back. Your post helps bring that awareness to us. Thanks, Lynette.
Agreed. They came to the brink and still require many protections to keep their numbers growing. They are so gorgeous, especially in flight. I didn’t know until recently about their history and about how precarious their existence is. Cheers.
It would be such a shame to lose these beautiful big birds. Good idea to do this post to make people aware of their precarious situation.
Thank you very much, Anneli. As you can tell, I’m quite a nature lover.
And I’m glad for that!
I’m happy to hear an effort was made to protect the whooping cranes. Hopefully their numbers continue to grow.
They are very protected in the Fort Smith area. Many precautions have been taken, including a ban on pesticides. I hope their numbers continue to climb, too.