They also commonly scavenge the carcasses of animals such as elk and bison that die in late fall to early spring. This is especially apparent on the Northern Range of the park. A Bald Eagle Management Plan objective for the greater Yellowstone ecosystem is to have 62 breeding pairs produce an average of 53 young each year. We are currently surpassing our Bald Eagle Management Plan objectives. Even if removed from the endangered species list, eagles and their habitat will be monitored and protected in Yellowstone and elsewhere, as specified in the Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
Whooping cranes are one of the most endangered birds in North America.
Historical accounts show very few records in western Wyoming and evidence of whooping cranes historically nesting in the park is sketchy at best. When visiting the park, one should not confuse the white whooping cranes with the duller, greyer, rusty sandhill crane. Sandhill cranes frequent the small meadows of the park. One whooping crane currently resides in the park in the summer, a remnant of a failed experiment conducted in the 1980s and early 1990s. These cranes moved south each winter, along with the sandhills, primarily to Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico.