CRANES

Cranes are an ancient family of birds. Scientists and archaeologists assume that cranes performed their courtly dance in the steamy primeval wetlands around 60 million years ago. The elegant birds are still strutting around today.

Cranes have long legs, long necks and are tall with grey or white feathers and patchy red face markings. Their groups are Gruiformes and include rails and bustards. They are very much like herons but bigger and in flights hold their neck stretched out – unlike herons. Cranes nesting on the ground and do not spend a lot of time in the trees as herons but the crowned crane roost in the trees.

Although shy, wary and always alert they are sociable birds. They live in a group and pairing up during breeding season. Cranes mate for life and the male helps to hatch and rear the offspring.

Most cranes are migrating birds. They long trips between winter feeding grounds and breeding areas. They fly in squadrons, in V-formed, and are very noisy when they fly. Their loud cries can be heard for many kilometres due to their long windpipe.

==================================================
PLEASE BE SO KIND AND CLICK ON ADVERTS.  THANK YOU.
===================================================

The common crane measures up to 1.2m and has a wingspan 1.5m. The plumage is ash-grey but the forehead, nape, throat, flight and tail feathers are black. On the top of its head is a crimson patch.  The adult male crane has a ‘cock’s tail’ which is a bunch of long feathers drooping over its tails. To display their beauty it raises these feathers.

European cranes start migrating in August and their majority in October and November flying at a speed of 50km/h. The majority over-winter in India and Africa and return in February and March.

SARUS CRANE

The sarus crane is the tallest flying bird. It can reach a height of 2m. They can be seen strutting along roadsides. They are sacred birds in Northern India and therefore quite numerous. 
 

The Eastern sarus living in south-east Asia are short and not common to be seen.

CRANE  SANDHILL

The sandhill crane is greyish and often speckled with reddish brown spot which were caused by the bird’s bill picking up mud and spread when preening its feathers.

Japanese and Siberian cranes are short and snowy white.

DEMOISELLE

Demoiselle cranes are mostly small and have beautiful whitish tuft of feathers on their neck and black plumes on their chest. They migrates large numbers such as thousands of birds and crossing the Himalayas or other mountain ranges

The black crowned crane living in tropical Africa and has a magnificent plumage. A black velvet cap, magnificently crown of straw-coloured bristly feathers, a red throat wattle and bar pink and white checks is describing its beauty. Their closed relative is the grey crowned carne and has a trumpeting very loud cry. Another species which was saved from extinction by conservationists is the whooping crane and therefore a very rare bird.

Cranes did not establish themselves in South America. The only relative species is the limpkin. It has the distinctive limping gait of a crane and a melancholy wailing. It lives throughout American wetlands hunting big snails.