Map of Whooping Crane stopover site use intensity within the Great Plains from satellite telemetered birds, 2010-2014

• Main Author: Aaron Pearse, David Brandt
• Format: Dataset
• Language: unknown
• Published: U.S. Geological Survey 2015
• Subjects: This information provides an examination of the distribution and intensity of stopover sites used by migrating radio-tagged whooping cranes.; Wood Buffalo
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5066/f7862dhm; https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/56253ce5e4b0fb9a11dd3d2b

Whooping cranes (Grus americana) of the Aransas-Wood Buffalo population migrate twice each year through the Great Plains in North America. Recovery activities for this endangered species include providing adequate places to stop and rest during migration, which are generally referred to as stopover sites. To assist in recovery efforts, initial estimates of stopover site use intensity are presented, which provide opportunity to identify areas across the migration range used more intensively by whooping cranes. We used location data acquired from 58 unique individuals fitted with platform transmitting terminals that collected global position system locations. Radio-tagged birds provided 2,158 stopover sites over 10 migrations and 5 years (2010-14). Using a grid-based approach, we identified 1,095 20-square-kilometer grid cells that contained stopover sites. We categorized occupied grid cells based on density of stopover sites and the amount of time cranes spent in the area. This assessment resulted in four categories of stopover site use: unoccupied (white), low intensity (beige), core intensity (green), and extended-use core intensity (red).