The whooping crane (Grus americana) is one of the world’s rarest birds and was listed as endangered in the United States under the Endangered Species Act in 1967.
Historically, whooping cranes were found in Louisiana as both a resident, non-migratory flock and migratory birds that wintered in the state. Conversion of the species’ prairie and wetland habitat to farmland and unregulated hunting led to the decline of this species both in Louisiana and across the nation. By 1945, only two whooping cranes remained in Louisiana.