Migratory sandhill cranes to be hunted in Kentucky

[seafan]

Source: St. Petersburg Times

.....

For the first time in almost 90 years, hunters are allowed to kill a limited number of migratory sandhill cranes. The birds typically leave their nesting grounds in Canada and the Great Lakes each winter to fly to Florida.

The nearly monthlong season runs until Jan. 15, with no more than 400 birds being harvested. If the hunt goes smoothly, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife plans to repeat it next year. Kentucky is the only state east of the Mississippi River to allow the hunt, although Tennessee has considered a similar proposal.

.....

The news hit hard at the Florida Trail Association office in Gainesville, where plans are under way for the first Florida Crane and Nature Festival on Jan. 14. The event will celebrate the migration of thousands of sandhill cranes to Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park, said Dennis Miranda, the association's executive director.

"I am horrified to think that any state would open up a hunting season with the notion that shooting cranes is a sport," Miranda said.
Although Kentucky hunters have described the bird as a wary and challenging prey, Miranda described the cranes' behavior at Paynes Prairie as more like sitting ducks.

"These birds will land in any marsh or a field in flocks," he said. "I think it's a tragedy."

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Read more: http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/sandhill-cranes-to-be-hunted-in-kentucky/1207567

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SKIP O’ROURKE | Times
Two sandhill cranes work their way through a field, foraging for food off of Town Center Boulevard in Brandon (FL) on Tuesday.


MAURICE RIVENBARK | Times
Each winter, sandhill cranes head to Florida from nesting grounds in Canada and the Great Lakes.



Endangered whooping cranes are currently on their way to Florida, led by ultralite aircraft and a dedicated team of migration experts. These birds recently passed through Kentucky, at times being joined by Sandhill cranes on the way south.

Follow their daily journey here.


Can we do no better for all of these magnificent birds than to hope hunters can tell the difference, that it is "past peak time" for whooping crane migration through Kentucky, and that for the survival of Sandhill cranes, pray for poor aim?


How about it, Mr. McConnell?

How about it, Mr. Paul?



This breaks my heart.

[KoKo]

1. Disgusting... Why would hunters need to do this? Have they killed off everything else for sport?

:cry: This is beyond words...

[PatrynXX]

2. seems like caged hunting to me

:( sad

[Blue_In_AK]

3. That's just sick.

I LOVE them. They're one of the earliest birds to arrive up here in the springtime. I love to take pictures of them down on the mudflats.

[NCarolinawoman]

5. I've been following these birds for years as they help the whooping cranes survive.

I've even painted them in murals.

These birds DO NOT BELONG TO KENTUCKY! They belong to all of this.

Those UN-BRAVE idiots who are hunting them, really make me sick to my stomach. :mad: :puke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[freshwest]

8. +1,000

[GKirk]

4. Sandhill cranes are referred to as...

...ribeye in the sky.

[Lorien]

14. Neither true nor funny. nt

[Enthusiast]

6. As a former hunter I have to say

that I am opposed to this hunt. What is the point of allowing a season for these cranes when Canadian Goose numbers are at record highs and serve the same purpose for meat hunters?

The cranes are certainly no challenge for the wing shooter with their lumbering "take-off". Are the cranes even fit table fare? I have never heard of anyone eating a crane -probably because they were nearly extinct until recently.

I just don't get it.

[lbrtbell]

7. This is sick

There are enough animals around, that you don't have to shoot these cranes!

[formercia]

9. I was under the assumption that Migratory Wildfowl hunting was controlled by the Federal Authorities

..so, why is Kentucky doing this?

cue...Dueling Banjos.

[ladjf]

10. That's also bad news for whooping cranes that closely resemble

the Sand Hills. Why in the hell would anyone take pleasure in killing a beautiful bird that has no value whatsoever to humans?

[Lorien]

15. I heard a hunter on NPR say that killing a big animal was "better than an orgasm"

to him. What a sick, pathetic excuse for a human being. I detest ALL sport hunters! They're all just like that sick redneck on NPR; getting a hard on for causing the death of another thinking, feeling, and emotional being. I teach an animal anatomy class and I see them all over google image search, grinning like idiots over the limp bodies of leopards, wolves, bear, every rare antelope imaginable and even elephants. The world would be a better place if they just hunted each other instead.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

11. Goddammit!! Why the hell do they have to do this?

I can't get the image of a huntin dude standing in the back of a pickup truck who I saw out my way this past deer season. Not the kind of guy I'd peg as an environmentally concerned sportsman.

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

:cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry:

[carla]

12. Until

the skies are blackened by such birds, we should refrain from hunting them. This makes me less than happy. 400 of these beautiful cranes will be shot dead for no reason I can imagine aside from the human love of blood sport. We will never outlaw war as long as we condone this type of senseless killing. Shame on Kentucky.

[Lorien]

13. Why on earth would anyone even think of hunting them? They're very trusting

and laid back birds, and they aren't plentiful! I had a pair that lived at my apartment complex years ago and they would sometimes follow me on my daily walks. "Challenging prey" my ass! Sandhill cranes are so tall that they are easy to spot wherever they are, and they won't move unless you run towards them while waving your arms and yelling!

[No Elephants]

16. Mmm. Crane.

Don't knock it.

After all, senseless killing is an American pastime, as well as our main manufacturing effort.

Where would our nation be without it?

Who needs pesky emotions like empathy and compassion?