FreeLists / tn-bird / [TN-Bird] 13th. Annual Sandhill Crane Viewing Day

[JimmWilkerson@xxxxxx]

Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge
Meigs Co., TN.
What an excellent two days!  The weather as compared to previous years was 
superb as the temperature hovered around 60 degrees with a partial sunny sky 
filled with the sight and sounds of the ever-present Sandhill Cranes.  
Unofficial 
estimates were between 4500 and 5,000 cranes in the surrounding area with 
more cranes present Sunday than the day before.  TWRA did a survey at the end 
of 
December and counted around 13,300.  Our own Chattanooga Chapter of TOS did 
the Hiwassee Christmas count on January first and counted 14,610. So, as you 
can 
see, some of the cranes have departed for the nesting grounds

An impromptu survey of the human guest revealed participants from these 
foreign countries:  England, India, South Africa, Australia and Japan.  There 
were 
many folks from Georgia and Alabama with guests also from Ohio, Kentucky, 
Illinois, Indiana, Mississippi, West Virginia, Nebraska and New York.  Our own 
state of Tennessee was well represented especially from Knoxville, Nashville 
and 
the Chattanooga area.   If I missed including anyone, in this list, I'm sorry 
I didn't have the pleasure of meeting you!

On Saturday we tallied 44 species.  We had several appearances of adult and 
immature Bald Eagles.  We think there was a total of 4 birds but we saw them 
several different times.  We also had a MERLIN flyover and away from us.  I'm 
beginning to think a Merlin has claimed part of the refuge as his territory.  
We 
see him almost annually now. This year we saw WILD TURKEY on both days.  
Saturday we had around 22 pop out of the woods along the roadside down near the 
lake.  On Sunday I think the count was 55.  Sunday I was so busy talking to 
visitors I forgot to keep my own total species list nor did I remember to ask 
Debbie and Roi Shannon for their totals. 

I hope someone else got a count of the visitors. I'd hate to have to venture 
a guestimate.  We were set up near where the busses arrived and departed.  The 
70 passenger busses arrived at about 15 minute intervals all day Saturday and 
there was also a steady stream of personal vehicles.  I was blown away by the 
number of visitors on Sunday!  Most people said they had waited to avoid the 
crowd from the day before.  It appeared to me that the crowd was almost 
exactly the same minus the bus traffic!

I would like to end by saying that the event has to be deemed a success.  And 
it was!!!!!!   However, all is not "hunkiedorie" in Perfectville.  I see some 
broad changes in the future relationships between TWRA and TOS.  All of them 
will and can be worked out I am confident.  There was a slight ruffle Sunday 
but it was quickly smoothed out and everything proceeded normally as if nothing 
had happened.  I think the time has come for an e-mail letter writing 
campaign to TWRA. I ask that you thank them for allowing TOS to participate in 
an 
interpretative roll.  We also need to be cognitive of the cost factor, in 
dollars, incurred by TWRA to stage this event and we need to equally thank them 
for 
doing this for "our" event!

Jimmy Wilkerson
Hixson, TN.


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