Hooded Crane

Grus monacha

Photo by Ingo

Identification

The Hooded Crane, Grus monacha is a small, dark crane. It has a grey body. The top of the neck and head is white, except for a patch of bare red skin above the eye. It is one of the smallest cranes, but is still a fairly large bird, at 1 m (3.3 ft) long, a weight of 3.7 kg (8.2 lbs) and a wingspan of 1.87 m (6.2 ft). The estimated population of the species is between 9,500 individuals. Adult crowns are unfeathered, red, and covered with black hairlike bristles. The head and neck are snow white, which extends down the neck. The body plumage is otherwise slaty gray. The primaries, secondaries, tail, and tail coverts are black. Eye color is hazel yellow to orange brown, legs and toes are nearly black. Males and females are virtually indistinguishable, although males tend to be slightly larger in size.

Juvenile crown are covered with black and white feathers during the first year, and exhibit some brownish or grayish wash on their body feathers.

The major threats to its survival are wetland loss and degradation in its wintering grounds in China and South Korea as a result of reclamation for development and dam building. The Hooded Crane is evaluated as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix I and II of CITES.

Distribution

The Hooded Crane breeds in south-central and south-eastern Siberia. Breeding is also suspected in Mongolia. Over 80% of its population winters at Izumi, southern Japan. There are also wintering grounds in South Korea and China. The breeding grounds of this species are in southeastern Russia and northern China. Non-breeding flocks occur in the Russia-Mongolia-China border region. More than 80% of Hooded Cranes spend the winter at the Izumi Feeding Station on the Japanese island of Kyushu. Small numbers are found at Yashiro in southern Japan, in South Korea, and at several sites along the middle Yangtze River in China.

Habitat

Hooded Cranes nest and feed in isolated sphagnum bogs scattered through the taiga in southeastern Russia, and in China, in forested wetlands in mountain valleys. Non-breeding birds are found in shallow open wetlands, natural grasslands, and agricultural fields in southern Siberia and northeastern Mongolia.

Behaviour

Mated pairs of cranes, including Hooded Cranes, engage in unison calling, which is a complex and extended series of coordinated calls. The birds stand in a specific posture, usually with their heads thrown back and beaks skyward during the display. The male always lifts up his wings over his back during the unison call while the female keeps her wings folded at her sides. Hooded Crane males initiate the display and utter one call for every two female calls. All cranes also engage in dancing, which includes various behaviors such as bowing, jumping, running, stick or grass tossing, and wing flapping. Dancing can occur at any age and is commonly associated with courtship, however, it is generally believed to be a normal part of motor development for cranes and can serve to thwart aggression, relieve tension, and strengthen the pair bond.

Hooded Cranes nest in isolated, widely scattered bogs in the taiga and in other forested wetlands. Mossy areas are preferred with widely scattered larch trees. Nests are constructed of damp moss, peat, sedge stalks and leaves, and branches of larch and birch. Females usually lay two eggs and incubation (by both sexes) lasts 27-30 days. The male takes the primary role in defending the nest against possible danger. Chicks fledge (first flight) at approximately 75 days.

All cranes are omnivorous. Hooded Cranes diet includes aquatic plants, berries, insects, frogs, salamanders, roots, rhizomes, seeds, grass, and small animals. At artificial feeding stations in Korea and Japan, Hooded Cranes eat rice, wheat, and other cereal grains.