Post Messenger Recorder -

The 2016 Whooping Crane Festival will be held September 8-11, in Princeton, Wisconsin, and other locations in the area. The festival weekend includes a free all day event for all ages on Saturday, September 10, at the Princeton Public School. For information on additional activities during the festival, visit operationmigration.org. Some of these activities require registration and a nominal fee.

Saturday’s all day festival will start with an 8:00 a.m. pancake breakfast prepared and served by Princeton High School students. Kids can build a bird house or have their faces painted, and edu-tainer David Stokes will present two interactive shows featuring live frogs, turtles, snakes and other creatures. Be sure to check out the gigantic origami crane folded by Princeton school students. It is expected to have a wingspan of more than 30 feet and will be on display in the large gym. Adults can browse the many silent auction items or the vendors, artisans and informational booths. Delicious food prepared by local vendors will also be available, and will include a pig roast.

Speakers at the Whooping Crane Festival will include: Patricia Manthey, retired DNR avian ecologist, will talk about bringing back the Trumpeter swan to Wisconsin; Beverly Paulan, a lead pilot for WI-DNR, and Joe Duff, CEO and Field Director for Operation Migration, will team up to talk about the role of aviation in wildlife conservation; and Patricia Fisher, a raptor rehabilitator, will share some feathered friends up close and personal. Joe Duff will close out the day by talking about current protocols for the Whooping Crane reintroduction program. All of these presentations are free.

Birding events during the festival will include a special tour of the International Crane Foundation (ICF) near Baraboo, Wisconsin. ICF is the only place in the world where you can see all 15 species of cranes. Sunday morning will feature a guided birding walk in the White River Marsh State Wildlife Area just outside Princeton where there is a very good chance you’ll see one or two endangered Whooping Cranes that have established territories in the marsh.

The Friday night festival kick-off dinner will be held at the Princeton Legion Hall. It will feature a silent auction and music by harpist Cheryl Murphy, whose playlist includes everything from Broadway hits to the Beatles. Following dinner, Operation Migration Co-Founder and CEO Joe Duff will discuss ‘the lighter side of bird migration’ and Operation Migration’s 2016 Volunteer of the Year award will be presented. There are also activities in the area on Saturday evening and Sunday so be sure to check out the entire schedule at operationmigration.org.

From just 15 Whooping Cranes in the wild, the world population of this highly endangered bird species has grown to more than 500 whoopers, thanks to a 75-year effort to save this magnificent bird from extinction. The Princeton community is thrilled to be known as the place where a small number of these incredible birds spend their summers.