- The annual migration undertaken by sandhill cranes in North America is considered one of the world’s great natural spectacles, on par with Africa’s wildebeest migration and the “march of the penguins” in Antarctica.
- Nowhere is the sandhill crane migration more visible in all its majesty than on the Platte River in the U.S. state of Nebraska — you truly have to see it to believe it.
- You can hear many of the sounds of the sandhill crane migration on a recent episode of the Mongabay Newscast. It’s one thing to hear the migration, however, and quite another to see it.
The annual migration undertaken by sandhill cranes in North America is considered one of the world’s great natural spectacles, on par with Africa’s wildebeest migration and the “march of the penguins” in Antarctica. And nowhere is the sandhill crane migration more visible in all its majesty than on the Platte River in the U.S. state of Nebraska — you truly have to see it to believe it.
The migration is underway now, as the birds head to their breeding grounds in the northern United States, Canada, and Siberia after having spent the winter in Cuba, Mexico, and the U.S. states of California, Florida, Texas, and Utah. According to National Geographic, more than three-fourths of all sandhill cranes make a stopover at what’s known as a “migratory staging area” along a 75-mile stretch of the Platte River every year.
The National Audobon Society has said that “The early spring gathering of Sandhills on the Platte River in Nebraska is among the greatest wildlife spectacles on the continent, with over a quarter of a million birds present at one time.”
While sandhill cranes are the most common crane species, habitat degradation and other environmental changes at key migratory staging areas like the Platte River could have major impacts in the future.
On a recent episode of the Mongabay Newscast, we spoke with researchers Ben Gottesman of the Center for Global Soundscapes at Purdue University and Emma Brinley Buckley of the Platte Basin Timelapse project about their work using camera traps and audio recording devices to document how the migrating sandhill cranes and other species that are important to the Platte River ecosystem are responding to changes in the environment wrought by climate change. You can hear many of the sounds of the sandhill crane migration (as well as chorus frogs, prairie chickens, and more) by giving the episode a listen:
It’s one thing to hear the migration, however, and quite another to see it. Brinley Buckley has also photographed the cranes as they make their stopover on the Platte River, and captured other species besides. She was kind enough to share the following pictures with Mongabay.
Here is a soundscape timelapse video Gottesman and Brinley Buckley made, pairing audio and photos of the Platte River ecosystem:
Follow Mike Gaworecki on Twitter: @mikeg2001
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