North America’s First Whooping Crane Death From Avian Flu
And it happened in Wisconsin to highly endangered bird.
An endangered whooping crane named Ducky was set for release into the wild in Wisconsin and died after contracting highly pathogenic avian influenza. Photo courtesy of Hannah Jones/International Crane Foundation
An endangered whooping crane set for release into the wild in Wisconsin died this month after contracting highly pathogenic avian influenza. It’s the first confirmed whooping crane death caused by HPAI, according to the International Crane Foundation.
Whooping cranes are highly endangered, with only about 700 left in North America.
The female crane who died, Ducky, lived at the International Crane Foundation’s headquarters in Baraboo. She was set to be released into the wild at Horicon National Wildlife Refuge with seven other whooping cranes this fall.
But in her last days, Ducky appeared lethargic and had little interest in flying with the other cranes, according to the foundation.
“We are deeply saddened by the loss of Ducky,” Kim Boardman, curator of birds at the International Crane Foundation, said in a statement. “Each whooping crane is invaluable—not only to our organization, but to the survival of the entire species.”
HPAI is a strain of bird flu. It’s present in wild bird populations in Wisconsin, and it particularly affects waterfowl and shorebirds like cranes. It can also spread to domestic poultry, and it was recently found at a poultry farm in Jefferson County, forcing 3 millions chickens to be culled.
The disease first appeared in North America in late 2021.
The foundation said other cranes might have been exposed but are showing no symptoms. Staff at the headquarters are currently monitoring their condition.
Diana Boon is the International Crane Foundation’s director of conservation medicine. She said HVAI and other viruses are a big threat to conserving the world’s small whooping crane population.
“There’s about 700 left in the world,” Boon said. “If we get a larger spread of infection within whooping cranes, it can certainly impact the recovery efforts pretty significantly.”
With only 70 birds in the eastern migratory population, one death represents more than 1 percent of the flock.
“Even losing one of them has a potential impact on the recovery efforts, especially a female that has the ability to produce eggs and offspring,” Boon said.
Crane populations across the U.S. have been greatly impacted by HPAI. Earlier this year, an estimated 1,500 sandhill cranes died from bird flu. It is common for sandhill cranes and whooping cranes to migrate together, leading to a higher risk of exposure to bird flu.
First whooping crane death caused by avian flu confirmed in Wisconsin was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
If you think stories like this are important, become a member of Urban Milwaukee and help support real, independent journalism. Plus you get some cool added benefits.
