How are whooping cranes different from sandhill cranes?
Whooping cranes stand 5-1/2 feet tall, and are the tallest birds in North America. Sandhill crane adults are about 4 feet tall. Adult whooping crane plumage is white with black wing tips, whereas adult sandhills are grey or sometimes grey and tan. They both have a bald spot – a red, bare patch of skin on their forehead. Whooping cranes are aquatic birds, spending virtually all of the time in wetlands. Sandhill cranes will use wetlands, but also feed in upland habitats. Whereas sandhill cranes have adapted to human agriculture and feed extensively on grain, seeds and tubers, whooping cranes prefer marsh habitat and prefer to eat crabs, invertebrates, frogs and minnows. And of course, sandhill cranes are much more common than the endangered whooping crane. Sandhill cranes occur throughout much of North America and number in the tens of thousands. Whooping cranes are known from a limited area in North America and the total world population is about 400 individuals. What is the current sta
