Smithsonian witnesses two rare crane hatchings

Two rare white-naped crane chicks hatched at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Va., researchers report. The hatchings are part of the North American White-Naped Crane Species Survival Plan, in which the National Zoo participates to breed the most "genetically valuable" cranes.

SCBI specializes in producing offspring from cranes that cannot breed naturally due to behavioral or physical problems, such as the cranes that produced the two chicks.

"They were hand-raised by people and imprinted on people," Chris Crowe, a bird keeper at SCBI, said in a phone interview. "They didn't get along very well with the other cranes and weren't able to breed." Because they hadn't bred before, their bloodlines were considered genetically valuable, and SCBI wanted their genes in the captive flock, Crowe said.

The Species Survival Plan hopes to produce a captive flock that is diverse in genetics and gender to ensure its health, Crowe said. The captive flock acts as "an insurance population in case something happens to the wild population," he said, adding that it is "managed for the long-term population."

The biological mother of the two newest chicks was artificially inseminated, laying the eggs on April 10 and 13. The chicks hatched on May 12 and 14. An experienced pair of white-naped cranes are raising the first chick, while first-time parents -- including the biological mother -- are raising the second.

There are currently about 60 cranes in the North American White-Naped Crane Species Survival Plan, with an estimated 5,000 living in the wild. Destruction to the crane's natural wetland habitats in China, Russia and Korea has led to the decreased population numbers.

Crowe said breeding genetically valuable cranes is important to "preserve the species because of us (human destruction) basically. So, it's kind of our responsibility to ensure their survival."

More: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2010/05/smithsonian-sees-two-rare-crane-hatchings/1

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