Once upon a time, in a faraway place called South Carolina, wintered two happy Whooping Cranes named W1-06 and 10-03. Okay, so South Carolina isn’t actually that far away. I happen to live there too. Partly because W1-06 is the oldest living wild-hatched bird in this population, and partly because we share a home state and a wintering state, I’ve always liked to keep up with her antics.
When I was first getting ready to move to South Carolina to start graduate school, W1-06 and her mate 10-03 had been wintering in the ACE basin in the lowcountry of SC. The landscape there is beautiful. The Nemours Wildlife Foundation and other landowners manage impounded wetlands for all kinds of wildlife, including many species of wading birds.
During 2014 when I was planning my first field season (including spending time in the ACE basin), W1-06 had begun associating with a new male (1-10), and her previous mate (10-03) was found dead on the breeding grounds. In cranes, typically the male of the pair will choose the wintering area, so last winter W1-06 headed to a new spot. Prior to this new pair formation, 1-10 had wintered in Kentucky, so off to Kentucky these two went! Instead of the impounded wetlands, W1-06 was now spending her winters in colder, flooded corn fields.
When I was first getting ready to move to South Carolina to start graduate school, W1-06 and her mate 10-03 had been wintering in the ACE basin in the lowcountry of SC. The landscape there is beautiful. The Nemours Wildlife Foundation and other landowners manage impounded wetlands for all kinds of wildlife, including many species of wading birds.
During 2014 when I was planning my first field season (including spending time in the ACE basin), W1-06 had begun associating with a new male (1-10), and her previous mate (10-03) was found dead on the breeding grounds. In cranes, typically the male of the pair will choose the wintering area, so last winter W1-06 headed to a new spot. Prior to this new pair formation, 1-10 had wintered in Kentucky, so off to Kentucky these two went! Instead of the impounded wetlands, W1-06 was now spending her winters in colder, flooded corn fields.
Last winter Sloane and I found W1-06 and 1-10 in a group of seven Whooping Cranes braving a winter snow storm. This winter, the group dynamics were a bit different. Some of the Kentucky winter residents were the same (2-04, 25-09, 24-09, 42-09, 1-10, and W1-06), but a couple had changed. Last year we tracked then-juvenile 27-14 in Kentucky, and this year we tracked her at Wheeler NWR in Alabama. Pair 13-02 and 18-02 were just the opposite. They have wintered in Wheeler NWR for quite a long time, and this year we tracked them in Kentucky! The last difference this year was the presence of W10-15 with its parents (2-04 and 25-09). Also, unlike last year when all of the birds were moving around together, this year they were split into a couple of groups.
After we finished collecting data in Kentucky, we eventually moved north to track Whooping Cranes in their northernmost wintering area in Indiana. Low and behold, we ran into W1-06 and 1-10 again! They apparently started moving north already, waiting for Wisconsin to thaw before they begin their next breeding season. We wish them the best this season and certainly enjoyed tracking them this winter!
After we finished collecting data in Kentucky, we eventually moved north to track Whooping Cranes in their northernmost wintering area in Indiana. Low and behold, we ran into W1-06 and 1-10 again! They apparently started moving north already, waiting for Wisconsin to thaw before they begin their next breeding season. We wish them the best this season and certainly enjoyed tracking them this winter!