One element that makes the festival so unique is the large crew of volunteers that interact with visitors, Melanson said. The volunteers come from all over the country to spend their time rubbing elbows with fellow wildlife lovers.

"The volunteers play a huge role here, probably more than other places. Most of them put in 10 hour days during the festival. Eight hours is supposed to be the minimum, but we have a lot of volunteers who put in twice that," Melanson said. "And they don't just work during the busy winter season — they're here all year long."

Volunteers outnumber refuge staff. They work alongside refuge personnel in teams to maintain the native habitats.

Water from the Rio Grande has been diverted to 8,000 acres of floodplain to create wetlands, marshes and farmland for the waterfowl.

Aside from cranes, the refuge also plays host to snow geese, Canada geese, bald eagles, American Coot, great blue heron, red-tailed hawk, quail, pheasants, blackbirds, sparrows and an assortment of ducks including mallards, pintails, shovelers and buffleheads. Several mule deer and elk also call the refuge home.

Keeping the visiting birds well fed is no small task, considering they consume around 1.5 million pounds of corn grown on the refuge each winter. The waterfowl also munch on alfalfa, cereal grains, grass seed, fish, amphibians, insects and seed-bearing plants.

Volunteers also conduct tours, operate the refuge's store, answer questions in the visitor's center and raise money.

Recently, the Friends of the Bosque raised $63,000 for the purchase of the privately owned Chupadera Peak, about 200 yards from the refuge's western edge. Visitors can now hike to the top of the 6,272-foot summit for expansive views of the refuge and beyond, said volunteer John Bertrand, who serves as a refuge media relations specialist.

Bertrand, who has tallied nearly 12,000 volunteer hours during his 15 years at the refuge, said donating his time has provided him priceless relationships with fellow volunteers and a sense of making a difference by protecting wildlife.

"It's been the finest thing in my life," said the 81-year-old Bertrand, who retired from Hughes Aircraft in California. "The system has given me an opportunity to be enjoyably productive in my years since I've retired."

The efforts of volunteers and paid staff have far-reaching economic benefits for the area. Wildlife conservation can mean big business for struggling states like New Mexico, where nearly a half million people headed outdoors in 2006 for a glimpse of wildlife.