If you received our latest newsletter you may have noticed a new section titled "Boots on the Ground". This section will share a story of something that happened over the last month and help you get to know our staff with something they have encountered.
Most Mondays here start with a staff meeting, where we go
over everyone’s plans for the week, and make sure we have the office covered
and vehicles scheduled. Most Mondays do not then involve herding a three
foot tall bird out of traffic in a cold, slushy parking lot. But December
12th, we did just that.
Sandhill cranes are endangered in Ohio, with just a few
dozen breeding pairs. Flocks also move through northwest Ohio during fall
migration. Somehow this juvenile bird got separated from the rest, and
was acting lethargic. Taking a wild animal into captivity isn’t a decision
to be made casually, but a bird that won’t fly also won’t migrate, and there
isn’t much food to be found in a parking lot in Bowling Green.
Fortunately, there is an animal rehabilitation organization
that was willing to take in a confused, lost crane. Nature’s Nursery sent
a volunteer to pick up the bird, and they gave it a thorough physical
examination. That didn’t turn up any problems, so the next step is to
look for diseases or toxins that might be affecting it.
If the crane recovers, it can either be driven south and
released with a flock on their wintering grounds or it will have to stay in
captivity until spring when the rest of the cranes return north.
You can follow along on the progress of the crane by visiting Nature's Nursery's Facebook page. We have included a video they posted last week.
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