Cranes are noteworthy birds found across most of the world, excluding Antarctica and South America, and are renowned for their long legs, long necks, and the unique ability to fly with their necks outstretched. Distinguished by their varied and striking plumage, which is often influenced by habitat, cranes also feature bare skin on their faces that can change color when the bird is excited. There are 15 species within the Gruidae family, distributed into three genera: Antigone, Balearica, and Grus.
Among these, the African crowned crane stands out. The African crowned crane occurs in scattered populations through the savanna zones of Sudan and Guinea with records from as far south as the Democratic Republic of Congo, but was once more numerous and widespread. We have both West and East African crowned cranes living in our African Savanna habitat.
There are two subspecies of Grey crowned crane: The East African B. r. gibbericeps (crested crane) occurs in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in Uganda, of which it is the national bird represented in its national flag, and Kenya to eastern South Africa. It has a larger area of bare red facial skin above the white patch than the smaller nominate species, B. r.
Grey Crowned Crane
Scientific Classification
- Common Name: African crowned crane
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Aves
- Order: Gruiformes
- Family: Gruidae
- Genus Species: Balearica pavonina (of a peacock; referring to the crown or crest)
Physical Characteristics
African crowned cranes are large, long-legged birds, with straight bills, long necks, and an elevated hind toe. The grey crowned crane is approximately 1 m (3 ft 3 in) tall, weighs 3.5 kg (7.7 lb), and has a wingspan of 2 m (6 ft 7 in). They have bare pink or red and white cheek patches and a golden feathery 'crown' protruding from the back of the head. Its body plumage is mainly grey and it has white cheeks, a red throat patch, and a stiff golden crown. The wings are predominantly white, dark grey and dark red with a golden yellow patch. The head has a crown of stiff golden feathers. The sides of the face are white, and there is a bright red inflatable throat pouch. The bill is relatively short and grey, and the legs are black. They have long legs for wading through the grasses. The feet are large, yet slender, adapted for balance rather than defence or grasping. The sexes are similar, although males tend to be slightly larger.
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This species and the black crowned crane are the only cranes that can roost in trees, because of a long hind toe that can grasp branches. This trait is assumed to be an ancestral trait among the cranes, which has been lost in the other subfamily.
Size: 110 to 130 cm (43.3 to 51 in.)
Weight: 3 to 4 kg (6.6 to 8.8 lbs.)
Habitat and Range
The grey crowned crane occurs in dry savannah in Sub-Saharan Africa, although it nests in somewhat wetter habitats. This species is found in wet and dry open habitats, but prefers freshwater marshes, wet grasslands, and the peripheries of water-bodies. They can also be found in marshes, cultivated lands and grassy flatlands near rivers and lakes in Uganda and Kenya and as far south as South Africa. In South Sudan it is especially found in areas with water up to 1 m in depth, and knee-high to hip-high vegetation dominated by Cyperus, Eleocharis, Scirpus, Setaria, Cynodon and various leguminous and rosaceous plants. This animal does not have set migration patterns, and birds nearer the tropics are typically sedentary.
Habitat Map
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Diet
This species is a generalist omnivore. The grey crowned crane is omnivorous, consuming a wide variety of animal and plant matter, including plants, seeds, grain, insects, frogs, worms, snakes, small fish and the eggs of aquatic animals. Its primary food source is small grain crops (45%), with small plants, small invertebrates, and small vertebrates also featuring in the diet. It will take insects, mollusks, millipedes, crustaceans, fish, amphibians, reptiles, seed heads, grass tips, and agricultural grain. Stamping their feet as they walk, they flush out insects which are quickly caught and eaten. The birds also associate with grazing herbivores, benefiting from the ability to grab prey items disturbed by antelopes and gazelles. They spend their entire day looking for food. These adaptable birds adjust their diet seasonally, consuming everything from small animals and eggs to grains and berries.
Behavior and Reproduction
The grey crowned crane has a breeding display involving dancing, bowing, and jumping. Both West and East African crowned cranes engage in elaborate courtship dances, which includes bowing, hopping, running, jumping, wing-flapping, and vocalizations, for which they enlarge their gular sac to create a booming call. Both sexes dance, and immature birds join the adults. Dancing is an integral part of courtship, but also may be done at any time of the year. It has a booming call which involves inflation of the red gular sac. It also makes a honking sound quite different from the trumpeting of other crane species.
Grey crowned cranes time their breeding season around the rains, although the effect varies geographically. After mating takes place, both the male and female incubate their clutch of 2 - 5 eggs, which hatch after 28 - 31 days. The grey crowned crane lays a clutch of 2-5 glossy, dirty-white eggs, which are incubated by both sexes for 28-31 days. In breeding, cranes build nests in shallow water. Chicks are precocial, can run as soon as they hatch, and fledge in 56-100 days. Chicks are able to fly when they are 35 to 40 days old. Nests are built on the ground in densely vegetated wetlands. Once they are fully grown and independent, chicks of different sexes will separate from their parents to start their own family. Grey crowned cranes have been seen to congregate in large numbers in a ceremony akin to a wedding when two chicks are being married off. They are social and gregarious during most of the year, living in pairs or family parties and congregating in flocks of up to 100 birds. They emit a trumpeting call of “u-wang u-wang” and also a guttural grunt. Their behavior ranges from solitary during breeding to sociable in large flocks outside the breeding season. Migration patterns vary greatly among species, with some traveling long distances and others remaining stationary.
Incubation: 22 to 25 days.
Clutch Size: 2 to 4 eggs.
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Sexual Maturity: No data
Life Span: Up to 25 years in zoos; wild life span unknown
Population and Conservation Status
The African Crowned Crane has experienced a rapid population decline which is predicted to continue into the future, primarily due to habitat loss and trapping for domestication or the illegal international trade. Although the grey crowned crane remains common over some of its range, it faces threats to its habitat due to drainage, overgrazing, and pesticide pollution. The survival of many crane species is threatened due to human activities. This species may have already disappeared from some countries like Nigeria. Many swamps and marshes where crowned cranes nest are being drained for agriculture or destroyed by pesticides. Crowned cranes are popular attractions in zoos and are often victims of illegal animal trade. Their global population is estimated to be between 58,000 and 77,000 individuals.
The western sub-population (B. p. pavonina) was estimated to number around 15,000 individuals in 2004, and the eastern sub-population (B. p. ceciliae) is less well-known, though estimated at 28,000 to 55,000 individuals in the same year. This gives a total population estimate of 43,000 to 70,000 individuals, roughly equivalent to 28,000 to 47,000 mature individuals.
Status:
- IUCN: Vulnerable
- CITES: Appendix II
- USFWS: Not listed
Africa’s Regal and Endangered Bird: The Grey Crowned Crane
Ecology and Conservation
African crowned cranes are important to the wetlands they live in as grazers on vegetation and as predators of small animals. Habitat loss and degradation are significant threats, occurring through drought, wetland drainage and conversion for agriculture, overgrazing, fire, agricultural and industrial pollution, industrial construction, and dam construction.
Fun Facts
- Unlike most cranes, African crowned cranes lack folds in their windpipes making their voices very different from other cranes.
- African crowned cranes occasionally roost in trees, a trait not seen in other cranes.
- These cranes are often considered the living fossils of the crane family.
- They were able to survive the Ice Age in the savannas of Africa.
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