Photo by Jo-Anne Bellemer 10/25/23 Winnebago County, IL
The idea of teaching birds to migrate seems simple. Raise them, train them, and when they are well primed, take to the air and they will follow. Operation Migration has endeavored to teach whooping cranes to migrate from Wisconsin to Florida. This is their thirteenth year and it never gets easier. Sometimes the cranes act up, sometimes there's equipment failure, but the main obstacle to a quick, smooth trip is the weather.
The Class of 2013 took off on October 2 and have flown a total of 175 of the 1,250-mile migration route. After being grounded for the last week due to inclement weather, they flew a whopping 55 miles today. Great job, chicks!