Four hundred and thirty seven. 

That, according to the latest survey, is the number of Whooping Cranes living in the wild.  Recovering from a low of twenty-one in the 1940s, Whooping Cranes are North America’s tallest bird standing up to five feet tall and sporting a wingspan that can reach seven and one-half feet.

Two separate migratory populations summer in northwestern Canada and central Wisconsin and spend their winters along Texas’ Gulf Coast and other parts of southeastern U.S.

It was in the Gulf Coast of Texas that I had one of my most memorable wildlife encounters, and practically in the comfort of home.  My wife and I were visiting her parents in Rockport Texas, and one day while sitting on the back porch, we heard the telltale rusty door-like trumpet of a Whooping Crane.  Thinking it was going to pass overhead, I was astonished that they landed in the marsh area that is practically in their back yard.  I rushed to grab my camera and was even more amazed when it wasn’t just one, but a trio – two adults and a juvenile!  They quickly discovered and ate a couple of snakes each and spent about thirty minutes in the marsh before flying off.

It was challenging photography to say the least.  The light was low, they were far off, I didn’t have a tripod, and the images technically weren’t all that great.  But that’s ok.  A clear picture in the mind and in the heart is far better than any photograph.