Sandhill crane migration may slow due to cold weather

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Migration season has already begun for sandhill cranes, but this week’s drop in temperatures could slow them down.

According to Nebraska Public Media, Over 27,000 cranes flocked to the Central Platte River Valley in Nebraska last week. The Crane Trust in Wood River says it’s one of the highest week one records they’ve surveyed in 20 years.

Cody Wagner with the Iain Nicolson Audubon Center at Rowe Sanctuary in Gibbon said it all depends on the weather conditions. Cranes love flying on warmer days with the wind, so there are fewer birds on colder days with north winds.

“Even though we are a little bit ahead of what we would normally expect to be at this time of year, especially with this cold snap that we’re seeing the week of the 21st, it may change,” he said. “We may slow down here with migration.”

If that continues, Wagner said more cranes may come in the second or third week of March.