Joel Sartore Rare:Portraits of America's Endangered Species

Joel Sartore has a new book. Rare: Portraits of America's Endangered Species The book is just what it says, wonderful portraits of some of America's rarest animals. Below is what Joel has to say about the Whooping Crane.

 

Once overhunted, these magnificent national treasures are now carefully monitored to prevent their total annihilation.  Captive breeding and migration training have saved the whooping crane, but power lines along migration routes, an industrial shipping canal in their wintering marsh, and reduced genetic diversity still trouble the species.

The story behind the photo:

The winter of 2008-2009 was a terrible one for the whooping crane.  A shortage of blue crabs along the Texas Gulf Coast led to the starvation and death of many birds over that winter, a devastating blow to the only wild breeding flock of North America's tallest bird.  The lesson to be learned from this is that one cannot assume the recovery of a species that is reduced to a single breeding group.  One fire, one chemical spill, one food shortage, and the results are catastrophic.  It's better in every way to save species before they become so rare.  This adult crane named Sara lives at the Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans.  She's the only adult whooping crane that is tame enough to walk into a classroom or photo studio, and feel right at home.

-Joel Sartore

Visit rarethebook.com

And a behind the scenes video