In this longest-yet episode of Whooper Happenings, Bev and Brooke talk about the 2008 chicks and the new migration route they worked so hard on, Marty Folk discusses the Kissimmee Prairie birds and loss of all the chicks this season. It has been a tough, dry year so far! Joe Duff talks about the new migration route and his expectations for the upcoming migration. The new route, which differs greatly from the past years, hopefully will expedite the migration this year, saving time and money. But the changes were not made just for these reasons! You'll hear why they were so important and needed! The route maps show the old migration (on the right) as compared with the newly planned route they will take this fall. Note that Indiana is bypassed, Alabama is bisected and Georgia only has the route to the very southwest of the state. If you have a question or comment, please e-mail whooperhappenings@earthlink.net . Thanks!

This was the 3rd year that Operation Migration celebrated International Migratory Bird Day at Disney's Animal Kingdom. We talked with many of the guests, and shared the enthusiasm we all have for helping to save this endangered bird. Also we have information about how the Whoopers and Whooping crane chicks are doing. Do send us a comment or suggestion at whooperhappenings@earthlink.net . Thanks! Operation Migration

Somehow, it seems that if you are thinking about Whooping cranes and their welfare, you just have to be thinking of ways to better save energy and avoid environmental waste! This is Earth Day 2008 as I post this podcast, and the past 38 years do seem to have run by so fast! I can recall picking up junk along roadsides on Eastern Long Island that first day, along with snapping dozens of photos which were displayed the next day in the high school office window. Being a yearbook student photographer had its advantagesâ I could avoid working as hard as some others! Heck, itâs not easy holding your 35mm in one hand and soda cans or a rusty chunk of scrap metal in the other! Brian Johns, the Canada Wildlife Services Whooping Crane Coordinator, talks about the returning birds and his expectations for nesting and chicks this summer. And I spoke with St. Markâs Refuge Manager, Terry Peacock, who discussed the recent open house about the new winter residents, answering questions for locals and seeking support for this project. They can use your help if youâll write a note and e-mail it to the guy doing the approval process. It will speed things up, and Iâll post a letter you can use. IMBDâ International Migratory Bird Day, fast approaches. Operation Migration will again be at Disneyâs Animal Kingdom, for the 3rd year. More on that later. Donât forgetâ if you have a comment or suggestion, send it to us at whooperhappenings@earthlink.net. Thanks! Photo - Several Class of 2007 members (#707 bottom corner inset) stopped at a cornfield, spending quality time chillin' and foraging in Illinois. Photos courtesy of Susan Nelson. If you would like to see a 2-minute video about Operation Migration, just click the arrow... My Odeo Channel (odeo/b92511486b2f9bdd)

It seems like a long winter this year, and even though the birds just arrived at Chass less than 2 months ago, they are getting ready soon to make their first northward migration back to Necedah, WI! Older adults such as #101 are already there, with others heading north right behind him. Route changes for this year's migration are not yet completely firm, but when they are Joe Duff will tell us about them. In this podcast I have the 2 winners from the question I asked last time, and we talk with Sara Zimorski, aviculturist with the International Crane Foundation, who with her team and several USFWS folks headed the Winter Monitoring and Tracking Team, caring for and watching over the birds this year. Sara talks about #703 and the others, and especially gives us some insight as to what we can expect to happen with the youngest bird, #735, whose one wing has kept her from flying and will not make the return migration! But it isn't so bad, as Sara tells us. Keep abreast of the northward migration of the Whoopers by going to the Operation Migration Field Journal at operationmigration.org/Field_Journal.html. Journey North is another great site for migration news at www.learner.org/jnorth/crane/index.html. Important and authoratative resources can be researched about all 15 crane species at the International Crane Foundation's website: www.savingcranes.org. Write to us at whooperhappenings@earthlink.net . Photo- Nadia Studnicka sporting her new WH t-shirt, with furry friend Emma. Photo-Abby Studnicka.

With the flyover at the Dunnellon, FL airport the morning of January 27th, and the final flight of the chicks to their winter home at Chassahowitzka NWR the following morning, their journey is complete! In just a few months they will get the urge to migrate north, and with luck, weather and timing on their side, we hope all 17 make it back to Necedah! It is always with mixed emotions that each pilot brings in his birds at Chass (they don't land with the birds) and as they pull up and away, even after years of doing this, each has a lump in their throat, knowing the fate of each bird, many they know all too well, now truly rests with nature! As one pilot told me a few years ago, "once you have done all you can do, the birds are free, on their own, and that is what we all want." We'll chat with Beverly and Brooke in an upcoming podcast; they are caring for the chicks out at Chass, and will soon be back at Patuxent to hatch and raise another batch of baby Whooping cranes, soon to be the Class of 2008! If you know the one common thing each flyover has the past 3 years at the Dunnellon Airport (other than that's where they were... not the answer I am seeking though!) send me an e-mail with your name, address and preferred t-shirt size. The first 2 correct answers will get Whooper Happenings t-shirts with the iWhooper on them. Send your answer to whooperhappenings@earthlink.net . Thanks to everyone who shared their comments with me at the flyover, and of course to the entire WCEP project team, especially Operation Migration and a few select members of the International Crane Foundation and Patuxent WRC, whose patience and determination are what really got the Class of 2007 to Florida! Operation Migration Operation Migration

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