Ultralight Ready To Lead 14 Cranes To Florida

By The Associated Press
Published: October 12, 2008

» Comments | Post a Comment

Another group of whooping cranes is set to follow an ultralight from Wisconsin to Florida this week.

Fourteen young cranes are scheduled to take off Friday from the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge, barring inclement weather. Ultralight pilots there have been leading the impressionable birds on longer and longer training flights.

They'll head to wildlife refuges on Florida's Gulf Coast, passing through Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia.

The project is part of the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership's efforts to reintroduce a migratory flock of whooping cranes to the eastern United States.

This will be the partnership's eighth ultralight-led migration.