Whooping cranes followed an ultralight aircraft from Wisconsin to Florida in January. Photo: USFWS

It’s mixed news for Wisconsin wildlife, reports Ron Seely of the Wisconsin State Journal.

Seely wrote a series of three stories recently about the status Wisconsin’s black bear, whooping crane and loon.

For the first time since the 1800s, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources believes that Southern Wisconsin is home to a population of black bears, Seely reports. Citizens report various bear sightings and research by the state has begun.

And it’s good news for the endangered whooping crane. Cranes are raising five chicks in the wild as part of a recovery project in the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge. Seely reports that since 2001, the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership released 101 cranes to the wild.

But birds that fly south for the winter like the crane and the loon could be seriously affected by the Gulf spill. Seely reports that 3,400 loons could join the flock south this year.

See related story: Gulf Spill threatens Great Lakes birds.