IUCN Conservation Status –
Least Concern
Extinct In The Wild
Class: Birds
Order: Gruiformes
Family: Gruidae
We are home to a pair of red-crowned cranes here at Paignton Zoo, they live opposite the spider monkeys.
This beautiful crane’s natural breeding habitat is wide-open pristine wetlands in north-eastern China, north-eastern Mongolia and Siberia.
They eat insects, aquatic invertebrates, fish, amphibians, small rodents, reeds, grasses, berries and other plants.
Interesting facts!
- Red-crowned cranes form flocks in winter but otherwise live in pairs. Once they have mated, the pair will stay together for life.
- The crane has one of the most beautiful dances in the bird world; these dances help to strengthen the bond between the mated pair.
- The red-crowned crane has been a symbol of immortality for centuries.
- The scientific name for the species, Grus japonensis, translates to ‘Japanese crane’, but they are also popular in China, Mongolia, Russia and North and South Korea.
Conservation
The red-crowned crane is said to be the second rarest crane in the world. It is classed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, with only around 2,000 individuals in the wild. They are most threatened by loss of habitat, as the wetlands where these cranes breed are shrinking and are now often too small to sustain the species.