FreeLists / tn-bird / [TN-Bird] Whoopers are at Hiwassee Refuge

[tenacbirder@xxxxxxxxxxx]

Hiwassee Refuge
Meigs Co., TN

I guess you could say that I had a gut feeling that today would be the day when 
Operation Migration would again continue their path to Florida.  I suspect that 
when someone posts to their field journal we will find that it was another day 
when they flew with their gut in their stomach as well!

I have been at each of the events since the first one when OM brought Sandhill 
Cranes on the first test.   Today was totally opposite of other arrivals in the 
past where one or possibly two trikes bring in the whole flock and the entire 
episode lasts less than 15 seconds.  For those of us gathered at the gazebo, 
our first sight of a trike was almost directly overhead with two birds.  Quite 
a while later another trike was spotted with 4 more birds.  I'm not positive 
but I think a third trike came next with four more birds.  At this point there 
were trikes and Whooping Cranes spread out all over the sky.  The final trike 
came into view with 6 more birds.  If you take the time, at this point, to add 
all the birds, they don't equal 18.  I have no idea where the other birds were 
or if for sure the real total at that point was 16.  From the 6 that came in 
last, one tired bird dropped out just before the lake.  It landed in the corn 
field with other Sandhill Cranes.  For the next 15
  minut
es or so two aircraft made repeated attempts to coax the whooper back into the 
air.  Finally after one trike dropped lower than either had dared before and in 
the mist of two dozen Sandhills, the Whooper took to the air and was skillfully 
picked up by one of the pilots who flew out of sight and dropped that last bird 
in the vicinity of the pen area.

What a sight.  What a feeling of exhilaration for those of us gathered.  
However, I don't think it was the same for the pilots.  One of them came in 
rather fast at tree top level just over the viewing area and appeared to be 
fighting the control bar to maintain stability.  The story we should hear lated 
is how difficult this flight really was.  I feel that all 4 pilots were worn 
out after this morning.

Jimmy Wilkerson
Hamilton Co.
Hixson, TN

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