Committee studying how to manage Wisconsin sandhill cranes

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A group of legislators, farmers and conservationists studying how to control Wisconsin’s sandhill crane population is set to hold its first meeting next month.

The Joint Legislative Council’s 12-member Study Committee on Sandhill Cranes is set to meet Aug. 1 at the Horicon Marsh State Wildlife Area.

The Joint Legislative Council is made up of the Legislature’s attorneys. The council puts together committees to study issues every even-numbered year with an eye toward recommending legislative changes in the next session.

The sandhill crane committee has been tasked with coming up with ways to manage the state’s sandhill crane population and reduce the crop damage they cause, including seeking federal approval to establish a hunting season.

Tens of thousands of sandhill cranes breed across Wisconsin or migrate through the state each spring and fall, according to the International Crane Foundation. But they feed on germinating corn seeds after spring planting and can cause significant damage to the crop, according to the foundation.

Multiple states, including Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Texas and Wyoming, hold annual sandhill crane hunting seasons, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Wisconsin lawmakers introduced a bill in 2021 establishing a sandhill crane hunt but the measure never got a floor vote. The bill’s chief Assembly sponsor, Rep. Paul Tittl, is serving as chair of the study committee.

The International Crane Foundation opposes hunting sandhills largely because they reproduce very slowly and hunters could kill endangered whooping cranes by mistake. The foundation has pushed farmers to treat their seeds with a nontoxic chemical deterrent.