Volunteers needed for north central Ohio sandhill crane count

EDITOR’SNOTE:ThisstorywasoriginallypublishedattheOhioDepartmentofNaturalResourceswebsite. COLUMBUS –TheOhioDepartmentofNaturalResources(ODNR)DivisionofWildlifeisseekingvolunteersforthefifthannualMidwestCraneCountonthemorningofSaturday,April12. TheDivisionofWildlifeiscollaboratingwiththe InternationalCraneFoundation and OhioBirdConservationInitiative toconductthesurvey. TheDivisionofWildlifealongwithpartnersandvolunteerswillcountthenumbersofsandhillcranesseenorheardinspecificcountiesinOhio. Thisyear’scranecounttakesplacein33counties.Theselocationshavehabitatswheresandhillcranestypicallynestsuchaswetmeadows,shallowmarshes,bogs,andotherwetlands.  NorthcentralOhiohasbeenamongthemostpopulatedareasforthisspecies.Thefivecountieswiththemostsandhillcranesreportedduringthe2024countwereWayne(106),Lucas(56),Geauga(48),Holmes(28),andRichland(27). AshlandCountyhad7sandhillcranescountedin2024afteronlyonein2023.KnoxCountyhad17coun