Wattled Crane Recovery Programme

In conjunction with the Endangered Wildlife Trust and the Highlands Crane Working Group, TWT partakes in the Wattled Crane Recovery program.

The Wattled Crane is South Africa’s second rarest bird and in recent crane counts has numbered around 250 individuals. This is due to habitat destruction, poisoning and power line collisions.

A number of institutions, such as TWT, have undertaken to try and breed these precious birds in captivity with the aim of releasing the chicks back into suitable wild habitats.

The chicks have to be reared using a special technique developed by the International Crane Foundation in Baraboo, USA, called costume rearing. The crane mother must wear a crane costume as she exercises and guides the chicks through their daily life. This way the chicks grow up believing they are cranes, instead of becoming imprinted as people. They are also conditioned to be able to adapt to wild conditions and stimuli. The Endangered Wildlife Trust conducts extensive fieldwork to prepare the habitats for the released cranes.