Ryan Michalesko

YouTube video by International Crane Foundation WATCH: Endangered Whooping Crane Chick Hatches

🐣 WATCH as an Endangered Whooping Crane egg hatches! I had a ton of fun putting together this timelapse for @savingcranes.bsky.social. This is chick #13-435 aka "Petrie," named after the "Land Before Time" character. After a few months of care under our team, Petrie will be released into the wild.

YouTube video by International Crane Foundation Magic of Migration

In March, I had the great honor of showing my bird-nerd friend @rachelpoke.bsky.social the great Sandhill Crane migration for the first time, as documented in this short by @hannahthewild.bsky.social and I for @savingcranes.bsky.social. Do watch! 🪶

Bottles of red wine with labels featuring a Sandhill Cranes

Very thrilled to see Crane Lake wine has replaced the Great Blue Heron on their label with an actual crane. It’s the little things these days…

Support Ryan Michalesko - Great Wisconsin Birdathon 2025 Birds need our help! North America has lost over 3 billion birds since the 1970s, but we can help #BringBirdsBack. By donating to my page, you're supporting not only the Natural Resources Foundation o...

Today I'm trying to see how many bird species I can find in my county in 24hrs as part of the WI NRF Birdathon to raise money for the Bird Protection
Fund and the Madison Feminist Bird Club. Please consider pledging. Your support means a lot to me—and the
birds. charity.pledgeit.org/WIBirdathon2...

Accessible birding in the United States: constraints to and facilitators of birding with disabilities While approximately one-quarter of the U.S. population has a disability, many people with disabilities remain excluded from equitable participation in birding. In this study, we compared the constr...

How can #birding be more accessible to people with #disability? See our research on constraints and facilitators!

Stand Up for the Endangered Species Act - International Crane Foundation The International Crane Foundation provides critical news and resources in the world of Cranes and Conservation. Stand Up for the Endangered Species Act

🌎 Stand up for the Endangered Species Act this Earth Day—submit public comments opposing the rule by May 19! Learn how you can help ⬇️ 🪶

Stand Up for the Endangered Species Act - International Crane Foundation The International Crane Foundation provides critical news and resources in the world of Cranes and Conservation. Stand Up for the Endangered Species Act

This #EarthDay, I am standing up for the Endangered Species Act, which is under attack. Signed to law in 1973—the same year @savingcranes.bsky.social was established—the ESA is a keystone of conservation success and credited with saving 99% of the species it protects. Submit public comments by 5/19.

Thanks, Johan!

A flock of Sandhill Cranes, warmly lit by the rising sun, cruise past a nearly full moon. The sky is blue, and there are just a few clouds looming in the background below the moon.

🌝Sandhill Cranes cruise past a nearly full moon at the Platte River, a breathtaking show of nature in Nebraska’s dawn sky.

A pair of Sandhill Cranes, warmly lit by the rising sun, stand facing each other with their wings outstretched and heads up in a dancing display.

One of the most captivating and emblematic behaviors of cranes is their dancing. It's a way to establish social relationships, find a mate, and strengthen pair bonds. On the Platte River, these Sandhill Cranes were likely strengthening their bond in preparation to fly north to the breeding grounds.

There are so many cranes on the Platte that it can be a fight for space—as one flock takes flight, another fills in their spot. On our last morning on the river, researchers conducting aerial surveys estimated an all-time record of 736,000 Sandhill Cranes on the 80-mile stretch of the Platte River.

You can say that again

It’s absolutely wild!!

‼️‼️‼️

Couldn’t agree more 🪶

Tens of thousands of Sandhill Cranes take flight at once early in the morning while thousands more stand below. The sky is a deep blue without the sun having yet risen.

When cranes all at once take skyward, you can feel it in your bones. The sounds of their bugles fill the air as much as their numbers darken the sky. Not long after settling into our blind, before the sun’s rays would strike the Platte River, we were immersed in this fantastic flight of cranes.

Thanks, Michelle

Much appreciated 🙏🏼🙏🏼

It’s a must see for sure

I’m here for it 😂😂

Eight Sandhill Cranes take flight at first light after roosting overnight on the Platte River in Nebraska. A nearly full moon backs the birds, as the sky just begins to take on a pink hue.

I am buzzing with excitement just back from another trip to see this spectacle! There is something profound about the great Sandhill Crane migration at the Platte River. Each morning is like tuning in live to nature’s crescendo—soft purrs in low light transform into a booming, prehistoric orchestra.

My heart is so full 🥹🥹

The GREAT migration. It was a glorious first evening on our trip to the Platte River, Nebraska, to document the great Sandhill Crane migration. There’s nothing like experiencing this much life right in front of you—it’s truly a natural marvel. @savingcranes.bsky.social #sandhillcranes #platteriver

I’ll be standing up for science in one week at the Wisconsin State Capitol. March 7, 12-3pm. Join @standupforscience.bsky.social in Madison and nationwide. #scienceforall #sciencenotsilence

Fearing spread, volunteers clean up 1,500 Sandhill cranes killed by bird flu Expert worry Sandhill cranes and other waterfowl will spread avian influenza to endangered whooping cranes.

"Dr. Diana Boon, of @savingcranes.bsky.social, said the Sandhill Crane deaths due to #birdflu also highlight a greater concern: the risk to endangered Whooping Cranes. While there are an estimated 827,000 Sandhill Cranes, there are as few as 834 Whooping Cranes globally." — @usatoday.com

These cuts are detrimental to society and the environment, and the repercussions will be devastating for generations to come.

It may seem small, but that’s their goal—to hide the quick destruction of these vital programs amongst the chaos.

Wisconsin groups pivot to protect wild birds from bird flu The recent uptick in avian flu is not only affecting industrial chickens, eggs and cattle. It’s also harming wild birds.

Wisconsin groups pivot to protect wild birds from bird flu — “Most of them die,” said veterinarian Diana Boon, director of conservation medicine at the International Crane Foundation in Baraboo. “And there’s really no cure or treatment for this disease except for supportive care.”

Avian Influenza Updates & Resources - International Crane Foundation The International Crane Foundation provides critical news and resources in the world of Cranes and Conservation. Avian Influenza Updates & Resources

#BirdFlu: Wondering if you can still use your bird feeders? What should you do if you find a dead bird? Check out @savingcranes.bsky.social avian influenza resource page for more frequently asked questions and our recent expert webinar on HPAI.

When a mission has been so successful that generations of people hardly realize it.

These pictures don’t lie.

Save the #EPA.

This is what America looked like before the EPA cleaned it up A snapshot from America before the impact of the EPA and the effects of rules regulating clean water and air were felt.

With death knocking on the EPA’s door, I’m reminded of this collection. In its early days, the agency enlisted photographers to document the state of the country’s environmental problems. “Back then, New York City’s air pollution was so thick that you often couldn’t see the city’s iconic bridges.”