#birdblog

[lovingcare-1210pro]

[chamomileeteaaa]

BIRD BLOG TIME FUCKERS

Okay so I have no clue how I'm gonna do this, I assume a format will arise as I go. But right now it's 3AM and I wanna talk about my favorite little birds: the Whooping Crane.

The Whooping Crane is one of the only two crane species native to North America, the other is the Sandhill Crane. (WE'LL GET INTO THOSE GUYS LATER I LOVE THEM TOO)

Anyway Whooping Cranes look like this:

LOOK AT THAT AND TELL ME THEYRE NOT SO CUTE???

Appearance:

You can identify adult Whooping Cranes by their white feathers and patch of red on their head, which goes from their beaks to their cheeks! This patch of red is actually skin and isn't very feathery. They have long, pointed beaks, usually a gray color as you see above. They have yellow eyes and long, thin legs. I've also seen that these cranes often have the tips of their wings black.

Immature cranes have the same long beak and thin legs, but instead of white feathers, have a tan, cinnamon-brown coloring and no red spot. As they age, their white feathers come in, so the more brown feathers they have, the younger they are.

Did I mention that Whooping Cranes are really big? Because Whooping Cranes are BIG

The average height of these guys is approximately five feet (range of 4'1" to 5'3" from what I've seen) when they stand up straight, making them the biggest birds in North America. Their wingspan is 7.5 feet on average, though despite their massive height and wingspan, Whooping Cranes weigh roughly 15 pounds.

Habitat:

Whooping Cranes live in marshes, wetlands, fields, anywhere wet and grassy. They breed in the upper Midwest and around northwest Canada, and migrate south to the Gulf Coast, around Mexico.

I should also mention that Whooping Cranes are very endangered as a species. In the 1940s, due to overhunting and habitat loss, there was once only 21 Whooping Cranes alive—15 migrate birds in Canada/Texas, and 6 that lived year-round in Louisiana.

With human intervention, the species has now risen to a population of roughly 800 (I found an exact number of 836, but can't speak for its accuracy).

Here's a migration map I took of off savingcranes.org (please visit them, they're so cool)

Diet:

Whoopers (I saw someone call them that) ate omnivores, eating a mix of insects, amphibians, crustaceans, reptiles, and small fish and mammals. They'll also eat grain, marsh plants, plant tubers, and acorns.

Fun Facts:

Whooping Cranes' call sounds like a squeaky door. People will try to tell you it's this majestic, one-note mating call, but it is a door hinge that needs some WD-40. Here's a few videos on what they sound like :)

( https://youtu.be/NFzkXdZjQJM

https://youtu.be/8EobJR_jkjs )

Because of how Whooping Cranes almost went extinct, biologists had used aircrafts to teach young cranes how to migrate. (Here's an article on it: https://www.npr.org/2016/03/02/468045219/to-make-a-wild-comeback-cranes-need-more-than-flying-lessons)

They mate for life! They search for a mate at around 2-3 years, and then mate for life. They'll also continuously return to the same nesting and wintering territories. However, should their original mate die, they'll find another mate.

It's late, otherwise I would do more😭

Sources:

https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/whooping-crane

https://savingcranes.org/learn/species-field-guide/whooping-crane/

https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Birds/Whooping-Crane

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Whooping_Crane/?_gl=1*10vkxuh*_ga*OTQ5Mjc2MzYyLjE2ODg1NDEwODY.*_ga_QR4NVXZ8BM*MTY4ODU0MTA5NS4xLjEuMTY4ODU0MTEyNC4zMS4wLjA.&_ga=2.29534207.1501623720.1688541086-949276362.1688541086

https://abcbirds.org/bird/whooping-crane/

I highly recommend checking these sites out, not just for Whooping Cranes, but for other birds.

[thefloofer-snooter]

I just realized that I haven’t shared any updates on Eleanor and Rigby here since the first post when I got them.  They’ve been here for well over a month now, and yesterday they moved to the bird room to meet Dart and Bullseye, since their quarantine was over.  They still aren’t tame at all. Eleanor will take treats and is more trusting than Rigby. They haven’t molted yet so they still look pretty awful unfortunately. They have very little stamina and agility and get exhausted from flying short distances. But they have been adjusting very quickly to being free all day, and being able to climb, chew, and fly as much as they want. They definitely seem much happier, even playing with toys and flying just for fun. They’re always close to each other, and if one flies off, the other follows.  I really don’t have big expectations for them to become handle-able. They’ve been through so much in their lives, I’m happy to just let them be free in the bird room and do what they want. It’s so nice to watch them enjoying life now. 

[bullyandgemma]

Couldn’t find the bird when I got home, the blinds are the first place I check when this happens but it still took me a couple of looks to find her and then she cracked the shits when I tried to get her down. Tiny got a temper.

[kabber]

He's sleepy

[bullyandgemma]

Little miss chatterbox.

[bullyandgemma]

A selfie with the boss of the house.

[bullyandgemma]

My little bird baby turned 5 yesterday! 🎉She’s still a little shit, but I love her.