Laserfiche WebLink
2.0 Comments Regarding Whooping Crane C <br />This section discusses the critical habitat designal <br />limited use of the Platte River by other species, <br />crane. In summary, this section demonstrates <br />designation when it was made in 1978, and that i <br />today, and shows that the habitat suitability guic <br />highly distorted and unrelated to species migratioi <br />2.1 Migration Dynamics of the Whooping <br />Habitat and Habitat Suitability Guidelines <br />on for the whooping crane on the Platte River, the <br />nd the habitat suitability guidelines for whooping <br />that there was no basis for the critical habitat <br />iere is no basis for the critical habitat designation <br />;lines for whooping crane on the Platte River are <br />habitat needs. <br />In the mid-1980s, EA Engineering, Science, nd Technology, Inc., Lincoln, Nebraska, was <br />commissioned to review available data regard ng behavior and habitat utilization of migrant <br />whooping cranes in the Wood Buffalo-Aransas flock. ("Migration Dynamics of the Whooping <br />Crane, with Emphasis on use of the Platte Ri er in Nebraska", EA Engineering, Science, and <br />Technology, Inc., December, 1985) The objectiv was to provide a contemporary synthesis of that <br />information in order to understand whooping cran use of the Platte River in Nebraska. <br />The EA report includes an analysis of radio-t <br />conducted in the early 1980s. To my knowledl <br />objective data collected to date on the behavior of <br />other than the recent Cooperative Agreement ae <br />have been biased due to disproportionate "surve <br />observers visiting the Platte for the sand hill cr, <br />activities is disproportionately much higher tha <br />corridor. <br />icking surveys of whooping cranes that were <br />, this data is still the most comprehensive and <br />ihooping cranes during migration. Other studies, <br />a1 surveys, have been opportunistic locates and <br />" effort, i.e., the number of "search" hours by <br />e migration and other hunting and recreational <br />other search efforts throughout the migration <br />The EA report includes an extensive analysis of <br />the Platte River, including a thorough review and <br />the work of Robert Porter Allen of the Nation, <br />sightings. <br />A copy of that report is provided with these cc <br />available data, the Committee is urged to fully <br />report. The report includes data from 1912 thrc <br />significant given the charge of the Committee. <br />is updated through 2002 in these comments. <br />The report includes an executive summary. <br />below. References are provided to specific s <br />e historical record of the whooping crane use of <br />ialysis of the pre-1942 sightings, and a review of <br />Audubon Society with respect to the pre-1942 <br />ents. In order to assure full consideration of all <br />ew and consider the information provided in the <br />1984. However, the results are still relevant and <br />i on Platte River habitat use by whooping cranes <br />pts from that executive summary are provided <br />of the full report.