Once widespread throughout North America, the whooping crane faced almost certain extinction in 1937 when the wild population dipped to just fifteen birds. Thanks to dedicated conservation efforts by Canada and the United States, the whooping crane has begun a slow but seemingly steady recovery. Coastal and marine pollution, illegal hunting, and the draining of crucial wetlands habitat pose continued threats to the species' survival. Named for their loud, resonating call which carries for miles, whooping cranes are snowy white, with black wing-tips, feet, and beak. Their cheeks and crown are bright red.
Juveniles are white with a mottled caramel head and neck.
Adults attain a wing-span of up to seven feet. In flight, the whooper extends its long neck and legs. Whooping cranes breed in Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada's Northwest Territories and migrate 2,400 miles annually to their protected coastal wintering grounds in Texas' Aransas National Wildlife Refuge . The cranes begin arriving in late October and remain until mid-April, at which time they begin the long journey back to Canada. Each crane family occupies a large territory of approximately one square mile, defending it from predators and other cranes.