Operation Migration 2015 (1 Viewer)

Mitchelle · Jan 7, 2016

01/07/2015—No Good Wind Again

Same Ol’ Thing

I could cut and paste exactly what was posted yesterday as it still pertains to this morning.

East-southeast winds at 1000 ft and blowing at 27-30 mph.

Still down waiting for the winds to blow in our favor…
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/07/day-90-same-ol-thing/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,240 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 8, 2016

01/08/2016—No Good Wind Yet Still Again

Still Grounded

We’ll be spending another day here in Chilton County, AL – courtesy of the southerly winds moving through the area.

Looking ahead, it appears rain will move through the region tomorrow and thereafter the winds come from the north…
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/08/day-91-still-grounded/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,241 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 9, 2016

01/09/2016—Bad Wind Again

Still Grounded

The southeast winds continue to blow – keeping us grounded for another day in Chilton County, AL.
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/09/day-92-still-grounded/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,241 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 10, 2016

01/10/2016—Winds Too Strong

As expected, winds are shifting around (finally) and are currently from the west. Unfortunately, they’re quite strong on the surface at 10 mph and even stronger aloft at 22 mph….
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/10/day-93-strong-winds/

See pics from the 4th annual Festival of the Cranes at the Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge, located near Decatur, Alabama.
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/10/day-93-strong-winds/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,244 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 11, 2016

01/11/2016—5 Out of 6 Flew 46 Miles to Lowndes County, Alabama…

…and anxiously anticipating tomorrow….

All the cranes and both pilots are safely on the ground in Lowndes County, AL.

Crane #11 dropped out at some point during the flight and was crated the remaining distance. Joe stayed with this young male bird until Richard van Heuvelen could get there to gather him up….
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/11/day-94-quick-update/

…and anxiously anticipating tomorrow.

It looks as if we may get another fly day tomorrow and originally, we did not have a suitable public flyover location for this migration stop.

Thanks to Big Daddy Lawler from the Gettin’ Outdoors Radio Show, we have a great flyover location now!
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/11/new-flyover-site-in-lowndes-county-al/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,245 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 13, 2016

01/12/2015—Unofficially: Trashy Air and Radio Problems

As of 1804 hours eastern, OM has yet to release an official statement concerning the events of today; however, the information I gathered from a brief peek into the chat room suggested that a test flight discovered “trashy air” and “radio problems” which resulted in a down day.

Be that as it may, Brooke Pennypacker’s Lead Pilot Report—from yesterday’s forty-six mile flight from Chilton County, Alabama to Lowndes County, Alabama—was published today.

You’ve got to read it, and again I recommend that you skip the excerpts I’ve provided, and activate the link.

…We flew over three ponds that were just too irresistible for the birds to pass up. “Hey! No lifeguard on duty!” I heard #1 call out, and down they went for a little aquatic fun….

…And so watching our chicks discover the wonders of the cow pie was just short of a spiritual awakening. First, one chick sunk his beak into a fat one. Then another came over to assist. And then another and another until it became a veritable “Whooper Cow Pie Extravaganza”. “They may be tough to clean”, #6 exclaimed, “But man, what a chew!” Not that they ate them, you understand. They just played…and played…and played. It was the whooper equivalent of a lava lamp or the piece of Samsonite luggage thrown into the gorilla cage….
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/12/day-94-lead-pilot-report/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,246 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

P.S.

OM has release its account of today’s events. Let’s see how close I was to being accurate. Excerpt from It’s All About Communication.

…Last night I replaced that button and everything seemed to work. It is a typical case of a thousand dollar radio and a five hundred dollar headset, connected by a five dollar cable. Problem solved, or so I thought.

The weather window we had this morning was very narrow. Winds on the surface were calm but aloft they were blowing 20 out of the west. With a clear sky and a rising sun, it would not be long before that wind was pulled down to the surface and we would have another bumpy ride.

When it failed again this morning, I tried another PTT and a different headset but still could not transmit. We were down for the day and had to live with the frustration of a lost flight caused by the lack of a five dollar part….
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/12/its-all-about-communication/

I guess the lead should have read Radio Problems and Trashy Air.

Mitchelle · Jan 13, 2016

01/13/2016—Unofficially, 5 of 6 Cranes Flew to Pike County, Alabama

Unofficial reports are such that five of six cranes made the flight from Lowndes County, Alabama to Pike County, Alabama. Number two was crated.

Mitchelle · Jan 13, 2016

01/13/2016—Fifty-one Miles to Pike County, Alabama

After some rodeoing this morning and then dropping number 2-15 off and relaunching with the remaining five cranes, the pilots had a smooth 51 mile flight to Pike County, Alabama – our final stop in this long state.

Joe witnessed #2-15 harassing #1-15 as they both fought for the lead position so the decision was made to land and crate the bully and try again with the others. It worked!
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/13/10809/

Excerpt from Day 96 – Lead Pilot Report:

…Everything was falling into place just the way the plan is written, but then number 2-15 started her tricks.

It seems the trike camera quit shortly after takeoff which is a pity because it was pointed directly at my left wingtip where number 1-15 was soaring along and setting a fine example.

Like a Spitfire in the Battle of Britain, number 2-15 dropped on her and an aerial dog-fight ensued. Number [1-15] held her spot but twisted and gyrated to foil the attack and get in her own licks.

Repelled, number 2-15 fell into the second position but poked and prodded from behind.

Not accepting her defeat, she cut to the right wingtip and took the rest of her squadron with her. Then she peeled off like a fighter leaving the formation and all but number 1-15 left me. That rodeo continued for 27 minutes. Then Brooke suggested landing back at the site to put number 2 in the pen…
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/13/day-96-lead-pilot-report/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,247 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 14, 2016

01/14/2016—Unofficially, On the Ground in Clay County

Unofficially, five flew and one crated. Rumor has it that it was number two, again, who was boxed.

Mitchelle · Jan 14, 2016

01/14/2016—Fifty-nine Miles from Pike County, Alabama to Clay County, Georgia…

…Well, at least five of them.

Excerpts from Day 97 – Lead Pilot Report:

To avoid the aerial warfare, we decided to crate number 2-15 again this morning.

If things went smoothly, Brooke planned to turn around and attempt to launch with her alone, but that did not happen. By the time the birds settled in and we were sure they would follow, we were too far along and still not confident. Ten miles from the starting point we were still at 200 feet….

…There are a number of helicopter related businesses in the Troy, Alabama area from a Sikorsky Service Center to University Aviation Training courses. Low flying rotorcraft are everywhere.
Five miles into the flight, a military Kiowa circled us to have a look and that was the only real time the birds broke and headed back. One wide sweeping turn and they joined my wingtip again….

…Our flight was so slow that Jo arrived with number 2-15 in the box, even before the pen was assembled.

It took one hour and forty-seven minutes to cover 59 miles.
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/14/day-97-lead-pilot-report/

Be sure to activate the above link to see pics.

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,247 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 15, 2016

01/15/2016—Rain

There is a large rain system sitting over top of us and preventing us to advance any further today. We have 150 miles to go before reaching St. Marks NWR south of Tallahassee.
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/15/day-98-rain/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,250 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 16, 2016

01/16/2015—Fog

OM’s initial morning report was entitled “Waiting for Fog.” Well, dismissing the fact that such was obviously a sentence fragment that didn’t mean what it said, they didn’t need to wait for fog. It was there: there in all its misty-wet, translucent-to-opaque, hazy-white glory. http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/16/day-99-waiting-for-fog/

So, they waited, and I spent the morning switching back and forth between cooking breakfast, photo editing, and peeking in on the pen site. On several occasions, all six of the young Whooping Cranes appeared in the frame at the same time. Maybe it’s just my imagination, but sips of hot coffee tasted better when I could see all six of the Class of 2015.

After several hours of waiting for the fog to lift, dissipate, burn off, or whatever mode of transportation it uses to leave, it became clear that the sheer, diaphanous shroud of low visibility was staying for lunch. See pic.
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/16/day-99-were-down/

The following video was apparently shot on Wednesday, the thirteenth, at the Lowndes County flyover site, after One and Two’s aerial dogfight and Two had been crated. It, too, made my coffee taste better.
http://www.wsfa.com/story/30958349/rare-whooping-cranes-follow-ultralight-over-alabama

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,250 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 17, 2016

01/17/2016—Surface Winds 10-13 Mile per Hour

Day 100 – Standing Down

Rain showers have finally finished, however, the winds on the surface are blowing at 10-13 mph and are just too strong to attempt a flight today.
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/17/day-100-standing-down/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,250 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 18, 2016

01/18/2016—Winds 21 Miles per Hour at One Thousand Feet

Winds aloft this morning are not what they were predicted to be. Currently they’re blowing at a healthy 21 mph at 1000 feet, which means we’re down.
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/18/day-101-were-down/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,260 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 20, 2016

01/19/2016—A Sorry Day. A Sorry, Sorry Day

OM was down today.., …and will be down until, at the least, Sunday: not because of the wind, not because of rain, not because of a low ceiling or fog, not because of snow, not because of freezing temperatures, not for lack of organizational interest, not for a lack of people willing to donate money to the cause, not for a lack of people willing to part with home and loved ones for months at a time, not for a lack of people willing to work for free, not for a lack of people willing to risk their lives, not for lack of the birds willing to migrate with a humans who lead them flying in ultralight aircraft (even Number Two wants to do it, as long as she’s the big ring leader); but because they have to take time out to justify their successful efforts to a bunch of bureaucrats (officials who work by fixed routine without exercising intelligent judgment) who care way more about themselves, their next raises, their next vacations, their next overtime hour, their next luncheon, their next perceived in-some-way-superior human being they can please or suck up to, or their next selfishly desired whatever… …than any possible distant human offspring their lives could bring or cause to come into existence—let alone some lowly, unrelated, insignificant, and unimportant bird{Period}

Lately, I have had another late night worry that keeps me staring at the ceiling at 3 am. As you can imagine, the upcoming WCEP meetings cause untold anxiety but recently I have been worried that those meetings will conflict with the end of a very long migration. By the time the meeting dates rolled around, we found ourselves still a hundred and forty miles short of our destination. We are currently in Clay County, Georgia with three more short stops to go. http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/19/standing-down-till-sunday/

Urge the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to consider actual scientific data before ending the use of the ultralight aircraft-guided release method: the most successful Whooping Crane recovery method in use.

3,263 of 4,000.
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/safeguard-the-future?source=s.em.mt&r_by=14458993

Mitchelle · Jan 22, 2016

01/21/2016—Winter Storm Jonas: Cause for Concern

Winter storm Jonas (a heavy snow threat to much of the eastern United States) also has a warm side, which currently contains a line of severe thunderstorms that is approximately two hundred, fifty miles to the west of Clay County, Georgia, and is headed its way.

Tornado warnings are currently in effect along that line of thunderstorms. (Not a cached link)
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/radar_tab.php

Mitchelle · Jan 22, 2016

01/22/2016—Cranes Weathered the Storm

By the time I woke up this morning, the worst of Winter Storm Jonas that Clay County will experience had passed through; so I monitored the chat room to get some idea of how the young ones fared.

At 0936 hours eastern, Featherface1 reported, “All looked great in the pen when we had the live camera briefly this morning.”

Featherface1 also reported that the meetings with United States Fish and Wildlife Service officials ended yesterday, but she had no word on how they turned out. Her reply to a question concerning the matter was, “…we don’t know anything other than they have been in meetings.”

Mitchelle · Jan 23, 2016

01/23/2016—Unofficially, It’s Over

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it's ending migrations of whooping crane populations that are led by humans piloting ultralight aircraft….

…The ultra-light migration that began last fall has been delayed several times by high winds, and currently is in Georgia. It will resume when weather permits to help the birds get to a wildlife refuge in Florida. Then, the ultralight component will end.
http://www.wpr.org/whooping-crane-conservationists-end-use-ultralight-aircraft-migrations

Mitchelle · Jan 24, 2016

01/24/2016—The End

Excerpts from End of Ultralight-guided Migration, by Joe Duff

…Operation Migration team has been very successful in achieving those goals. In fact, the Ultralight led method we pioneered comes closer than any other technique yet developed. It provides the highest survival rate, greater pairing and the only fledged chicks produced in the Eastern Migratory Population….

…Despite those achievements, you can only judge the success of a wildlife reintroduction by fecundity or the ability for the population to produce young and grow to a self-sustaining level. Of the 240 plus birds released into the EMP, only ten chicks have survived to fledge. We have taken pride in the fact that all of those successes have been the result of UL pairs, but it’s a long ways from sustainability.

So why, despite their appropriate behavior, are the offspring our birds produce not surviving? Why, in 2015, did so many eggs hatch but only three chicks survive?....

…Maybe here is a common thread that we have all overlooked.

There are two possibilities. The first is hand rearing. Maybe in their early development, hand raised chicks miss some behavior that only real parents can teach. All of the Whooping crane reintroduction projects have used hand or costumed reared birds and maybe we can teach them to migrate and be wild birds, but not how to be good parents.

The second unknown is captive selection. When animals are raised in captivity for multiple generations they undergo genetic changes that may weaken their ability to persist in the wild….
…Of these two possible inhibitors, there is only one that WCEP can address….

…On Friday after the WCEP meetings, the Guidance Team gathered in a small boardroom at ICF. Pete Fasbender spoke first and after a long presentation about the future of the EMP and OM’s contribution, he told me that the decision was final. There will be no more aircraft led releases….
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/23/end-of-ultralight-guided-migration/

Well, it’s time to roll the credits—like scrolling down the comments to Joe’s post—to the swan song of one hundred, forty more miles and two more stopovers. They will try to fly tomorrow.

Mitchelle · Jan 25, 2016

01/24/2016—Correction: The Swan Began This Morning

Chalking it up to my focus on the disappointing notice that human-guided migrations will be no more, I ignored all the publishing dates and didn’t even entertain the notion that they would be flying today.

They did: Fifty-eight miles to Decatur County, GA.

Brooke Pennypacker led the charge this morning with Richard van Heuvelen flying in the chase position.

It took some wrangling to get them to form up on the wing of the aircraft but after about 20 minutes they seemed to fall into line. (See pics.)
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField/2016/01/24/day-103-successful-flight/

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