Crowned crane

Crowned crane
	Crowned crane ( Balearica pavonina )
Systematics
Class :	Birds (aves)
Order :	Crane birds (Gruiformes)
Family :	Common crane (Gruidae)
Subfamily :	Crowned cranes (Balearicinae)
Genre :	Crowned Cranes ( Balearica )
Type :	Crowned crane
Scientific name
	Balearica pavonina
	( Linnaeus , 1758)

Face drawing of a crowned crane in the Walsrode World Bird Park

Black-necked crowned crane in Tierpark Berlin

The Gray Crowned Crane ( Balearica pavonina ), and black-necked crowned crane , peacock crane or Dark Gray Crowned Crane called, is a bird art from the family of cranes (Gruidae). It is closely related to the South African Crowned Crane ( Balearica regulorum ). There are two subspecies. Their distribution area is in sub-Saharan Africa .

The stock situation of the Crowned Crane is given as vu (= vulnerable - endangered), as the population of the Crowned crane has declined sharply over the decades. The main cause is the destruction of its habitat through drought, overgrazing , the use of pesticides and drainage.

Appearance

The nominate form West African crowned crane ( Balearica pavonina pavonina ) reaches a body length of 95 centimeters. The body plumage is dark slate gray to slate black. The wings are white and reddish brown, the inner wings are not elongated, and the number of the wings is ten. The back toe is well developed and set high. It allows the Crowned Crane to find support while building up .

As is characteristic of Crowned Cranes, the Crowned Crane has a striking, straw-yellow, tufted feather crown on the back of the head. The large bare cheek patch is white above and pink below in the nominate shape. The red patch on the cheeks extends to the lower edge of the eye. The throat clunkers are very small in both subspecies.

The Sudanese Crowned Crane subspecies is noticeably smaller than the nominate form. In terms of plumage, the subspecies resembles the nominate form, but the red eye patch in this subspecies extends beyond the edge of the eye.

Distribution area of the two subspecies

The crowned crane is found in West Africa and the Sahel region.

The distribution area of the nominate form extends from Senegal to North Cameroon in the west and Lake Chad in the east.
The Sudan Crowned Crane ( Balearica pavonina ceciliae ) occurs from the Nile Valley eastward to Lake Turkan and the Ethiopian Lakes.

Habitat and way of life

The Crowned Cranes inhabit open grasslands near the water as well as wetlands and silting areas of lakes. They also occur on agricultural land. Outside the breeding season the Crowned Crane is a sociable bird, during the breeding season it can usually be observed in pairs. Like all cranes, crowned cranes are monogamous and enter into a permanent marriage.

Crowned cranes build their nests in the immediate vicinity of the water. They are usually ground nests, but in exceptional cases they are also built in low bushes or on trees. Occasionally they also use the old nests of birds of prey for their breeding business. The clutch comprises three to four eggs and the incubation period is 28 to 31 days. Both parent birds breed and then look after the young birds. These are able to fly at an age of around 10 to 12 weeks.

The diet consists of seeds and various grains. They also eat insects, mollusks, crustaceans and fish, as well as amphibians and reptiles.

Trivia

The Crowned Crane is the national bird of Nigeria , but is no longer found there due to hunting and habitat destruction.

A European conservation breeding program exists for the West African crowned crane ( Balearica pavonina pavonina ) .

The crowned crane is the heraldic animal of Uganda and is carried on the flag of the state.

literature

Mark Cocker, David Tipling: Birds and People . Jonathan Cape, London 2013, ISBN 978-0-2240-8174-0 .
W. Grummt , H. Strehlow (Ed.): Zoo animal keeping birds. Verlag Harri Deutsch, Frankfurt am Main 2009, ISBN 978-3-8171-1636-2 .

Web links

Commons : Crowned Crane - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Balearica pavonina in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2012. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2012. Accessed September 19 2016th
Videos, photos and sound recordings about Balearica pavonina in the Internet Bird Collection

Single receipts

↑ Balearica pavonina in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2012. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2012. Accessed September 19 2016th
↑ W. Grummt, H. Strehlow (Ed.): Zoo animal keeping birds . P. 262
↑ W. Grummt, H. Strehlow (Ed.): Zoo animal keeping birds . P. 263.
↑ Mark Cocker, David Tipling: Birds and People . P. 184
↑ Grummt, H. Strehlow (Ed.): Zoo animal keeping birds . P. 268.

[1] Balearica pavonina in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2012. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2012. Accessed September 19 2016th

[2] W. Grummt, H. Strehlow (Ed.): Zoo animal keeping birds . P. 262

[3] W. Grummt, H. Strehlow (Ed.): Zoo animal keeping birds . P. 263.

[4] Mark Cocker, David Tipling: Birds and People . P. 184

[5] Grummt, H. Strehlow (Ed.): Zoo animal keeping birds . P. 268.