Whooping Crane Summer Range is a 16,895-km²

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The p ...

complex in the

boreal forest Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruc ...

s of northern

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

and southwestern Northwest Territories in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. It is the only natural nesting habitat for the endangered

whooping crane The whooping crane (''Grus americana'') is the tallest North American bird, named for its whooping sound. It is an endangered crane species. Along with the sandhill crane (''Antigone canadensis''), it is one of only two crane species native to ...

. On May 24, 1982, it was designated a Ramsar wetland of international importance, one of two such sites in

Wood Buffalo National Park Wood Buffalo National Park is the largest national park of Canada at . It is located in northeastern Alberta and the southern Northwest Territories. Larger in area than Switzerland, it is the second-largest national park in the world. The park w ...

(the other is Peace-Athabasca Delta). It is owned by the

government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

, and is administered by Parks Canada with some input from

Indian and Northern Affairs Canada Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

. Encompassing the northeastern portion of Wood Buffalo National Park, about 2,300 km² (14%) of the wetland is external to the park, on Crown land in the Northwest Territories. It is also classified an Important Bird Area. The range is a complex of contiguous water bodies, primarily lakes and various wetlands, such as

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found a ...

es and bogs, but also includes streams and ponds. In addition to the whooping crane nesting area, the range includes two sites classified during the International Biological Program. Because the area developed through wildfires, "no natural forest fires in the area are extinguished unless they threaten structural facilities or...leave the boundaries of Wood Buffalo National Park". A whooping crane census in 1941 counted only 15 migratory birds. Currently, 178 migratory birds winter and breed in coastal

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

, primarily in the

Aransas National Wildlife Refuge Aransas National Wildlife Refuge is a 115,324-acre (466.7 km2) protected area situated on the southwest side of San Antonio Bay along the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Texas. It is located in parts of Aransas, Refugio, and Calhoun Cou ...

. Annual population surveys are conducted by the

Canadian Wildlife Service The Canadian Wildlife Service or CWS (french: Service canadien de la faune), is a Branch of the Department of the Environment (Environment and Climate Change Canada), a department of the Government of Canada. November 1, 2012 marked the 65th ann ...

. A few breeding pairs of the peregrine falcon also nest in the range. Due to the significant threat of

extinction Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

of whooping cranes, access to nesting sites is strictly controlled, limited only to researchers and park staff, and low-flying aircraft are prohibited in the area.

References

{{Ramsar sites in Canada Ramsar sites in Canada Landforms of Alberta Landforms of the Northwest Territories Important Bird Areas of the Northwest Territories Wetlands of Canada Wood Buffalo National Park Important Bird Areas of Alberta Protected areas established in 1982 1982 establishments in Alberta