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Notes from the President

I would have failed photography school. Whenever I find myself in the exotic crane places of the world, I am flanked by photographers who are able to capture the elegance and excitement – the pure charisma – of cranes in the most breathtaking ways. My camera, however, tends to focus less on the dramatic beauty and more on the menacing threats to the crane world. A Blue Crane roosting under a big, ugly powerline – click! A Wattled Crane struggling to feed on a parched, dusty floodplain – snap!

Texas Whooping Crane Wintering Area May be Affected by Oil Spill

ICF is concerned about the Kirby Inland Marine oil spill that occurred in Galveston Bay, Texas on March 22. If prevailing winds and currents drive the oil spill southwest along the Texas coast, there may be a possible landfall of spilled oil along Matagorda Island and adjacent bays later this week. This could potentially put the endangered Whooping Crane at risk.

ICF and UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine Treat Injured Whooping Crane


An old English proverb states “the eyes are the window to the soul.” In my line of work, the eyes are sometimes a window into the health of a patient. Though the eyes may not be the most prominent feature of cranes, compared to raptors for instance, the cranes do show beautiful diversity in eye color, and have a predictable shape and relationship to the form of the skull. When changes occur in this presentation, the observant among us know something could be wrong.