If John Christian has anything to do with it, more Americans in the Eastern United States will be fortunate enough to see the Whooping Crane in the wild.
If you’ve never seen a whooping crane before, you are probably not alone. And if you have seen one – you’d remember.
The species is an inposing figure. Standing at nearly 5 feet tall with a wingspan of 7.5 feet, it is the tallest North American bird. Along with the Sandhill Crane, it is one of only two cranes species found in North America and has been on the endangered species list since 1971.
As the former Co-Chair of the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (http://www.bringbackthecranes.org/), a coalition of Federal, state, and non-governmental organizations, John Christian has spent the last eight years working to restore the endangered whooping crane as a breeding species in the eastern United States.
Under John’s strong leadership, over 70 whooping cranes have been reintroduced—and the first successful nesting, hatching, and fledging of a migratory whooping crane east of the Mississippi River in more than eight decades occurred under his watch.
In 1999, John formed the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership, an alliance of ornithologists, conservationists, ecologists, ultra light crews, and aviculturalists collaborating to re-establish a migratory flock of whooping cranes.
The group began raising whooping cranes from the initial egg laying stage in captivity, releasing them in the wild in Wisconsin, and providing flight training using ultralight planes to lead the cranes across seven states to historic wintering grounds in Florida.
Today, there are about 530 whooping cranes in existence, with 380 of them in the wild. Whooping cranes were on the verge of extinction in the 1940s, with only 15 birds being recorded at that time. John’s efforts may have ensured the longevity of this endangered species in the wild.
While the wild whooping crane pairs are being viewed as a conservation success story since they have been bonding and laying eggs, obstacles still remain in habitat loss and that many of the birds are abandoning nests before the eggs hatch.
"There are many theories on why the whooping cranes are leaving the nests,
but mine is that they are just young "teenager" parents and as they
mature they will get it right," John adds.
Nonetheless, because of the conservation efforts of John and the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership, new lands have been dedicated to wetland birds because of the presence of the whooping cranes at sites along the migratory route. More importantly, people in the local community are excited about new ways of thinking about conservation.
“We cannot continue to exist on this planet unless we take care of it,” John says. “To do that requires that people develop an appreciation for nature and that it be considered in every decision.”