Whooping crane stopover habitat use and migration movement data in relation to drought severity, 2010-2022

Wildlife species face threats from climate and land use change, which may exacerbate how extreme climatic events influence population persistence and biodiversity. Migratory waterbirds are especially vulnerable to hydrological drought via reduced availability of surface water habitats. We assessed how whooping cranes, an endangered species in the U.S. and Canada, modified habitat use and migration strategies during drought to understand this species’ resilience to changing conditions and adaptive capacity. The data included 8,555 night-roost sites used by 145 cranes, 2010–2022, under non-drought conditions, moderate drought, and extreme drought conditions.