“Hope” is coming to Birmingham
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The Birmingham Zoo is going to have a very special visitor on Saturday, January 7th, between 11:00am to 1:30pm.
The International Crane Foundation’s 7 foot tall Whooping Crane mascot “Hope” will be making an appearance.
“Hope” is a creation of the Jim Henson Company, the same people that brought you Kermit the frog and Sesame Street. So, you could say that “Hope” is a relative of Big Bird!
The Birmingham Zoo’s special guest is named after a real-life Whooping Crane, who was born at the International Crane Foundation in Wisconsin. Her name was also inspired by the Emily Dickinson poem, “Hope is the thing with feathers”.
In Alabama, in the winter, you can see Whooping Cranes in Alabama at the Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge.
“Whooping Cranes are here because people had hope and they never gave up on saving Whooping Cranes,” stated Lizzie Condon, ICF’s Keeping Whooping Cranes Safe Coordinator.
To learn more about Whooping Cranes and the work of the International Crane Foundation, visit https://www.savingcranes.org
