A whooping crane flies out of the nest to feed. The bird remains one of the rarest in the world.
See Glorious Pictures of Birds as Tall as People
The once thriving population now only has one flock in the wild.
People love rooting for the underdog, which might help to explain the popularity of the charismatic whooping crane - often considered an icon for endangered species, and a poster child for habitat restoration.
Standing at around 5 feet tall, with a wingspan of over 7 feet – they are the tallest bird species in North America, and live for an average of over 20 years in the wild.
Whooping cranes have been around for a staggering 60 million years, and are one of the few living relics of the Pleistocene-era megafauna.
In 1941, the number of these large, majestic birds dropped dangerously low, with only 16 individuals remaining. The odds for their continued survival looked grim.
Thanks to the combined
