Wheeler NWR Cranes

About this spectacle

Each winter, Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge in northern Alabama hosts one of the most impressive crane gatherings in the eastern United States. Sandhill cranes — sometimes numbering in the thousands — descend onto the refuge's wetlands and agricultural fields, filling the air with their resonant, bugling calls. Visitors scanning from the refuge's enclosed observation building watch wave after wave of birds trading between roost sites and feeding areas, often joined by Canada geese and other waterfowl in spectacular numbers. Dawn and dusk flights are especially dramatic as cranes lift off or settle in long, undulating ribbons across a southern winter sky. The spectacle is entirely auditory as much as visual: the rolling, prehistoric rattle of massed cranes carries across the flat fields and echoes off the Tennessee River bottomlands. Winter weather is mild by northern standards, and the managed refuge landscape keeps viewing distances comfortable for binoculars and long telephoto lenses.

When to go

Oct — Mar, peak Dec — Feb

Getting there

Nearest airport: HSV. Nearest city: Huntsville.

Booking options

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