ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – If you have ever seen a Florida sandhill crane in your neighborhood, you know how slow they can sometimes walk. It can be dangerous for them to cross the road if a car doesn’t slow down in time.
Linda Sibley from Horizon West started a petition online to get a sign put up in her neighborhood for people to slow down. The signs are yellow and say “Wildlife Crossing.”
Orange County District 1 Commissioner Nicole Wilson says she was already aware of Linda’s petition and Wilson is glad people are looking out for the cranes.
“We don’t know exactly where those nesting areas are, so it’s sometimes a resident that alerts us, that allows us to go back and see, ‘OK this is an area of concern, let’s go ahead and get some signage or reduce the speed limit or whatever we can do,’” Wilson said.
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The cranes are protected under the U.S. Migratory Bird Treaty Act. It’s also a state-designated “threatened” species.
You don’t need a petition to get a sign in your Orange County neighborhood.
“Dial 3-1-1, especially if you see a pattern of a particular area where you see them crossing, it’s as simple as putting in a request with our environmental protection division, they evaluate it, and then then they can put in a work order for public works to put a sign up,” Wilson said.
If you see a sandhill crane that is injured or dead, contact the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at 1-888-404-FWCC (3922).
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