Wisconsinite Paul Wait of Delta selected to serve on 12-member panel to examine management options and potential legislation

Delta Waterfowl will be represented on a legislative study committee directed to review and recommend options to manage Wisconsin’s sandhill crane population.

Wisconsin native and resident Paul Wait, who works for Delta Waterfowl as senior manager of communications, has been selected as one of eight citizen representatives on Wisconsin Legislative Study Committee on Sandhill Cranes. The committee will be chaired by State Rep. Paul Tittl of Manitowoc (R-Manitowoc), with State Sen. Romaine Quinn (R-Cameron) serving as vice chair.

“We greatly appreciate the consideration from Rep. Tittl and others to allow Delta Waterfowl to be part of the study committee,” Wait said. “Having a seat at the table allows us to continue Delta’s ongoing effort to use the best available science to most effectively manage migratory bird populations in Wisconsin and throughout North America.”

Sandhill crane populations have increased substantially in Wisconsin and throughout the eastern United States. Recent analysis by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates the eastern population of sandhill cranes is increasing by 4.4% annually. In 2010, the Mississippi and Atlantic Flyway Councils endorsed a management plan for the eastern population of sandhill cranes. The plan included guidelines for harvest when the three-year average during the fall survey exceeds 30,000 cranes. In 2022, the USFWS estimated the fall population at 107,164.

Wisconsin is in the core breeding range for eastern sandhill cranes, and tens of thousands migrate through the state each autumn. The fall 2022 survey counted 61,098 cranes in Wisconsin. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, cranes cause an estimated $1 million of crop damage annually in Wisconsin, mostly to newly planted corn fields, but also to potatoes and beans.

Sandhill cranes are currently protected in Wisconsin, however about 1,000 are killed each year on federal depredation permits, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. If state laws were changed to allow a hunting season for cranes, farmers could be compensated for damage caused by cranes.

It’s a complex issue, one that Wisconsin lawmakers have chosen to examine more closely. Plans call for the committee to meet monthly starting in August. The stated purpose:

“The study committee is directed to review and recommend options for legislation relating to the management of Wisconsin’s sandhill crane population. The committee shall examine population trends and determine whether any changes to state law would effectively address the incidence and consequences of crop damage caused by sandhill cranes in this state. As part of a comprehensive review of policy options, the committee may consider whether the Department of Natural Resources should seek federal approval to establish a hunting season for sandhill cranes. The committee shall recommend legislation to manage the population of sandhill cranes and address the agricultural impact of sandhill cranes.”

The committee is comprised of four legislators: Tittl, Quinn, State Rep. Dave Considine (D-Baraboo), State Sen. Mark Spreitzer (D-Beloit), and eight citizens: Wait, Rick Gehrke of the Wisconsin Corn Growers Association, Tamas Houlihan of the Wisconsin Potato & Vegetable Growers Association, Meleesa Johnson of Wisconsin’s Green Fire, Anne Lacy of the International Crane Foundation, farmer David Mickelson of DeForest, Todd Schaller of Wisconsin Waterfowl Association, and Benjamin Sedinger, assistant professor in waterfowl and wetland conservation at University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

Wait studied wildlife management, water resources, and biology at UWSP for three years before completing his degree in communications. He has worked in outdoors and conservation media for nearly 30 years, including the past 13 at Delta Waterfowl.

Delta Waterfowl is a premier international conservation organization with roots dating to 1911. During the late 1930s, University of Wisconsin professor and father of wildlife conservation Aldo Leopold was instrumental in establishing Delta’s world-renown waterfowl and wetlands research program. Today, Delta is thriving as a continental leader in waterfowl research, habitat conservation, duck production and hunter recruitment and advocacy. The organization has 60,000 members throughout North America, with an ever-growing number of members and supporters in Wisconsin.

Delta Waterfowl is The Duck Hunters Organization, a leading conservation group working to produce ducks and secure the future of waterfowl hunting in North America. Visit deltawaterfowl.org.

For more information, contact Cyrus Baird at cbaird@deltawaterfowl.org.