Monday, September 30, 2013

Saving an Endangered Species with Guest Author Kathleen Kaska

I am thrilled today to offer an excerpt from Kathleen Kaska's marvelous book about Robert Porter Allen, one of our environmental heroes. Kathleen has offered to give away one copy of her book - she will choose the winner randomly from those who leave comments. Check out Kathleen's links, too - especially her blog. I've been reading it since it began. Good stuff! ~ Sheila


Excerpt from

The Man Who Saved the Whooping Crane: 

The Robert Porter Allen Story

 by Kathleen Kaska



Whooping cranes who currently live
on the Aransas National  Wildlife Refuge
in Texas. Photo courtesy of Mike Sloat.
It was April 17, 1948 in the early hours of a muggy Texas morning on the Gulf Coast. The sun at last burned away the thick fog that had settled over Blackjack Peninsula. The world’s last flock of wild whooping cranes had spent the winter feeding on blue crab and killifish in the vast salt flats they called home. During the night, all three members of the Slough Family had moved to feed on higher ground about two miles away from their usual haunt. The cool, crisp winter was giving way to a warm balmy spring, the days were growing longer, and territorial boundaries were no longer defended. Restlessness had spread throughout the flock.
           
As Robert Porter Allen drove along East Shore Road near Carlos Field in his government issued beat-to-hell pickup, he spotted the four cranes now spiraling a thousand feet above the marsh. He pulled his truck over to the roadside and watched, hoping to witness, for the first time, a migration takeoff. One adult crane pulled away from the family and flew northward, whooping as it rose on an air current. When the others lagged behind, the crane returned, the family regrouped, circled a few times and landed in the cordgrass in the shallows of San Antonio Bay. It was Allen’s second year at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. He had learned to read the nuances of his subjects almost as well as they read the changing of the seasons.
           
In the days preceding, twenty-four cranes left for their summer home somewhere in Western Canada, possibly as far north as the Arctic Circle. This annual event, which had been occurring for at least 10,000 years, might be one of the last unless Allen could accomplish what no one else had.



Related Information:
         
Allen in his office.
Learning of Robert Porter Allen’s story, and seeing the whooping cranes myself on numerous occasions at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, inspired me to bring attention to Allen’s work preserving these magnificent birds. In 1984, I had the opportunity while studying marine biology at the University of Texas Marine Science Institute, to observe dozens of shorebird species along the Texas coast. I returned one December to take my first whooping crane tour at the Aransas Refuge. Learning of the cranes’ endangerment, I immediately knew I wanted to make a difference in the species’ survival. As a middle-school science teacher, I included a bird unit in my environmental curriculum. I was determined to instill in my students a passion for any environmental cause.
         
Years later when I began freelance writing, I realized I had another outlet for spreading the word. In researching an article about whooping cranes for Texas Highways magazine, I learned that few people had ever heard of Robert Porter Allen or the work he did to save the species. This was when I decided to continue my research and turn the project into a book. Robert Porter Allen’s story needed to be told.

UPDATE!
9/30/13

Operation Migration announced today as the official start of the Class of 2013's migration south to Florida. Eight young whoopers have completed their flight training at White River Marsh in Wisconsin and are ready for their maiden migratory flight to Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge in Florida where they will join the Easter Migratory Flock for the winter. Wish them luck; they have a long, exciting journey ahead. To follow their progress, log on to OM's In the Field.
http://operationmigration.org/InTheField







Kathleen Kaska, writer of fiction, nonfiction, stage plays, and travel articles has just completed her most challenging endeavor. The Man Who Saved the Whooping Crane, a true story set in the 1940s and 50s, is about Audubon ornithologist Robert Porter Allen whose mission was to journey into the Canadian wilderness to save the last flock of whooping cranes before development wiped out their nesting site, sending them into extinction. Published by University Press of Florida and released in 2012, the book has been nominated for the George Perkins Marsh Award for environmental history. Kaska also writes the award-wining Sydney Lockhart Mystery Series and the Classic Triviography Mystery Series.

My Links:

Want to learn more about the whooping crane, check out the following websites?



20 comments:

  1. Thanks, Sheila, for having me as your guest today, and helping spread the word about the endangered whooping crane. The species has increased in number from 15 in 1942 to almost 600, but the struggle continues.

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  2. This sounds like a fascinating book. I've been to the Aransas Refuge and was in awe. I don't think I saw any whooping cranes, but it was the first time I'd ever seen a roseate spoonbill.

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    1. Thanks, Nancy.
      The Aransas National Wildlife Refuge is one of my favorite places to visit. The whoopers are there for the winter between October and March. It's also the best time for humans to visit Texas. And, yes, the spoonbills are brilliant, especially when they flash those scarlet wings against a clear blue sky.

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  3. I am so pleased to see you highlight "The Man Who Saved The Whooping Crane" on your blog, Sheila. Thank you! Bob Allen's passion and perseverance, and the sacrifices he and his family made in order to save this magnificent bird at the most critical time in the specie's history is a story that needed to be told. And Kathleen tells it very well indeed. I observe whooping cranes for TX Parks and Wildlife, and Kathleen's tales of Bob Allen come to mind frequently when I observe and listen and take notes in the field. Allen's shoes are too big for me to fill, but I sure do enjoy the attempt...Thanks, Kathleen, for making the man come alive and come near, and for helping us not to take for granted the enormous efforts that went into helping North America's tallest bird slowly regain a more secure footing today. CM

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    1. CM, thank YOU for the work you do! And for coming by here. I'm absolutely delighted to have Kathleen as my guest.

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    2. Thanks to another whooping crane fan for stopping by Sheila's blog. I'm so happy you enjoyed the book. Writing it was a labor of love.

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  4. Thanks for having me as a guest, Sheila. My goal in writing the book was to make sure a great man was not forgotten.

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  5. I love your writings Kathleen. The history is accurate and true even in your fiction writings. I love your books. Thanks Sheila for having Kathleen as your guest.

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    1. It was my pleasure, Patsy. Thanks for stopping by - I hope you'll come again!

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    2. So nice of you to say so, Patsy!

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  6. I live near the White River Marsh in Wisconsin. One of the highlights of my life has been to see the eight young whooping cranes train with the ultralight this summer. After a two day delay, tomorrow may be the day they are able to leave for Florida. I admit I haven't read the book but I will very very soon.

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    1. Hi Barb,
      How exciting to be so close to the training site. I watched a cohort train in 2010 when they were at Necedah and it brought tears to my eyes. I logged on to OM today and saw that they actually took off. I missed the live feed, though.

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  7. Thank you for all you do for the whooping cranes. They need people like you to raise awareness about their plight & journey. Blessings!

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  8. I would love to read your book Kathleen! I was fortunate enough to actually see a Whooping Crane many years ago in the sixties. Just one single bird flying over our farm in Missouri but there was no doubt in my mind what kind of bird it was. A memory that I will never forget!

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  9. I would love to read your book Kathleen. Until this year I had never heard of Operation Migration. We recently purchased a large piece of land in Green County that is a stopping point on the migration route. The more I read about these amazing birds and volunteers and the whole process, the more I want to read about it.

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  10. I've been smitten with whooping cranes since I first saw them on Matagorda Island, Texas, in the mid-1990s. I like their grace, their beauty and how fiercely they will protect their babies and themselves. Now I get to see them at Patuxent Research Refuge in Maryland and still feel a kinship with them.

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  11. Pleased to learn about your book!
    Several years ago we set the alarm clock at an extremely early hour so we could be settled in at the airport near Dunnellon FL to see the cranes fly over. The crowd was absolutely quiet and later had the opportunity to visit with the OM team and to see the ultralights close up. We're pleased to be part of OM.

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  12. Robyne, Lois, Danette, Mary Beth, and Anonymous, Thanks so much for your comments. Once you see the whoopers, you're hooked. I saw them for the first time in late 80s at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Texas when I was a science teacher. I knew at that moment, I wanted to do what I could to make a difference. It took many years, but the book turned out to be my small effort to a giant cause. I have yet to see a new class flyover on the way south, but that is on my bird bucket list.

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  13. How glad to know the book is available. In a time when hope is sometimes hard to experience however these birds and their story bring a smile to my face and hope to my heart.

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  14. Thanks again to all who visited Sheila's blog and left a comment. They were all so encouraging and supportive. And congratulations to Barb who won a copy of my book!

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