Whooping Crane Fact Sheet

Click here to listen to a Whooping Crane unison callFun fact: The Whooping Crane is named after the species’ loud, bugling call. Click on the the image to the left to listen to a Whooping Crane unison call. This call is made by a pair to protect their territory and to strengthen their pair bond. Can you identify the male and female crane by listening to their call? The male calls once for every two calls made by the female.

Conservation status: Endangered

Range: North America

Habitat: wetlands/grasslands

Food: tubers (starchy swellings on the roots of plants), insects, seeds, small mammals and reptiles, blue crabs, crayfish

Height: Whooping Cranes average about 5 feet tall (150 cm) and are the tallest flying bird in North America. A Whooping Crane's wingspan (the distance between a bird's outstretched wing tips) is 6-7 feet (~ 180-210 cm).


blue crabThreats: Habitat loss is one of the greatest threats to the Whooping Crane. On the Whooping Crane's wintering grounds along the Gulf Coast of Texas, human use of the Intercoastal Waterway erodes wetlands, and barge traffic carries chemicals, gas, and oil products that, if spilled, could harm the cranes, their habitat, and food supply.

The potential loss of freshwater along coastal areas is another significant threat to the health of the Whooping Crane's wintering areas in Texas and Florida. Growth of human communities is reducing amounts of freshwater reaching the coastal marshes where Whooping Cranes live, increasing the water salinity (amount of salt in the water) and threatening the availability of blue crabs (right) that are an important food source for the cranes.

To learn more about Whooping Cranes, click here.