First of all, let’s be clear; whoever shot the whooping crane in Jackson County is not a hunter. They are a poacher. Maybe they hunt legally during other times of the year, but the moment they crossed the line and pulled the trigger on a protected animal, they went from being a hunter to a poacher. So if you hear anyone say the endangered crane was killed by a hunter, please correct them.
Indiana’s Turn In a Poacher program, which is a joint collaboration between the DNR and the general public used to report and ultimately limit game law violations, has established a special reward fund for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for killing the whooping crane, “Bird 605,” found dead Dec. 30 in southeastern Jackson County near Crothersville.
Whooping cranes are protected by the Endangered Species Act, the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act and state laws. In the 1940s, there were only a few dozen left. Today, we have an estimated population of about 500 in the wild. Obviously, with so few whooping cranes alive, each one is a valuable piece of the repopulation puzzle.
TIP launched the Whooping Crane Fund with a $2,500 commitment, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service immediately matched it with a $2,500 donation. The Humane Society of the United States and its Humane Society Wildlife Trust Fund also added $2,500. Turning in a poacher is something you should be proud to do for free, but hey we all have bills, and $7,500 would sure help. (more…)






