The remains of a second whooping crane were recently found at a lake near the Georgia-Alabama border.
The crane, released last year in Wisconsin, was found shot to death at Weiss Lake, less than a quarter-mile from where another crane was found, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said. The most two deaths bring the total to five whoopers killed this winter after the remains of three others were found in southwestern Georgia.
Officials believe the two crane deaths at Weiss Lake are related and laboratory results are pending. The most recent crane found dead was last tracked in late January. The reward for information about the cranes' deaths is now at $23,250.
“We hope this reward may help generate leads from anyone who may know about these deaths,” said Jim Gale, special agent in charge of law enforcement in the service’s southeast region, said in a statement. “We are working hard to bring the offender or offenders to justice and greatly appreciate any assistance the public can offer.”
The three cranes, which were banded and equipped with transmitters, were part of the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership effort to reintroduce the birds into the Eastern United States. They were released in the fall.
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