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Profiles were measured at Whooping Crane roost sites and ten predetermined decoy <br />locations on riverine sites using surveying equipment owned by the Program. Three parallel <br />transects 25m apart were established perpendicular to the general flow of the river at each site <br />such that the middle transect crossed the crane or decoy location. Elevation measurements were <br />taken about every 3m along each transect using a stadia and transit. End points were determined <br />when an obstruction greater than 1.5 m in height was encountered such that it formed a visual <br />barrier to a crane. A 24 -inch long steel rebar stake was driven level with the ground into the high <br />bank or other location along one of the transects so that water elevation could be determined at a <br />later date. A second rebar marker was driven level with the ground in case the first stake was <br />lost due to bank sloughing. A GPS location was recorded for each stake. Stream flow data was <br />collected from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) at gauging stations located at Overton, <br />Kearney, and Grand Island. Leica laser rangefinders were used to measure the length of <br />sandbars and distance to visual obstructions >1.5m. Whooping Crane movements, behavior, and <br />diurnal habitat use was recorded when possible. All monitoring activities followed USFWS <br />guidelines. Martha Tacha, USFWS Coordinator for the Cooperative Whooping Crane Tracking <br />Project, kept our team apprised of the latest sighting reports and census results from the <br />wintering grounds on a regular basis. Tom Stehn, refuge manager of Aransas National Wildlife <br />Refuge in Texas, conducted surveys on the wintering grounds and provided the results via email. <br />Landowner permission was obtained prior to entering any property. <br />Whooping Crane decoys were placed at 15 randomly selected locations provided by <br />Headwaters Corporation (Table 1) for the purposes of determining survey detection rates. Five <br />locations were off -river and the others were in the river channel. The air crew did not know <br />• when or where the decoys were placed. Observations of Whooping Crane decoys by the air crew <br />were reported to the ground crew for confirmation. <br />• <br />A toll -free telephone number for the public to report Whooping Crane sightings was <br />sponsored by the Platte River Whooping Crane Habitat Maintenance Trust. This volunteer effort <br />was known as Whooper Watch. AIM personnel distributed Whooper Watch flyers to prominent <br />bird - watching centers alerting the public of this number. All Whooping Crane sightings reported <br />to officials by the public were classified as opportunistic locates. Following a report, ground <br />crew procedures were implemented as outlined above. <br />Results <br />Opportunistic Locates.— <br />We received 5 reports of possible Whooping Cranes from the public, Whooper Watch, or <br />USFWS. One resulted in a confirmed Whooping Crane sighting on April 14. <br />Final Spring 2008 Whooping Crane Monitoring Report <br />6/20/2008 <br />