Was there any previous conclusion in Idaho about how a wild Asian crane could appear in North America?Vickie HendersonKnoxville, TNIn a message dated 12/14/2011 12:10:50 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, csloan1973@xxxxxxxxx writes:Scott is tied up but has looked at the pics and forwarded them to me. It's definitely a Hooded Crane. This will be an interesting debate as to its origins. There is only one previous report from the ABA area, of one in Carey, Idaho in April 2010. So far as I can tell, ABA checklist committee has not acted on it and I cannot tell what, if anything, Idaho was done. Captive birds are typically leg banded and the Idaho bird was not. There is also some chance that this bird at Hiwassee is the same bird.
Chris Sloan
Nashville, TN
http://www.chrissloanphotography.com
On Wed, Dec 14, 2011 at 10:14 AM, Charles Murray <dro_1945@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Yesterday, Marie Sutton and Phyllis Deal from Lexington, KY spotted a strange crane at the Hiwassee Wildlife Refuge from the gazebo in Meigs Co. I arrived on the scene and called Jen Davis, ICF crane tracker. She arrived, took some digiscope photos and took the following notes on the 'mystery bird.'Crane Description:Smaller than a Sandhill. A shorter beak than the Canadian Sandhills on the HWR. Makes a higher pitched call, and is not the same sound. Black body with long tertial feathers. White Neck. Red cap. Black around the eyes.Jen contacted Bryant Tarr, crane curator at ICF. He believes the crane is a hooded crane. Jen has sent this description and some photos to Scott Somershoe.Charles MurrayBirchwood, TN