adult

adult flying European distribution group at rest

Identification

At rest, Cranes are rather stork-like but with big bushy tails and grey bodies; even from a great distance you'll also see the white stripe through the black head. In flight, the long neck, held outstretched and slightly drooping makes them quite different from the herons and the grey plumage eliminates both of the storks. Their habit of flying in flocks in 'V' formation and making trumpeting calls may cause confusion with geese but the long trailing legs soon scotch that idea.

Habitat

Breeds in large areas of marsh and bog. Occurs in winter and on passage in open, often agricultural, areas close to large wetlands used for roosting.

Behaviour

Flocks of Cranes in late spring can be watched performing their 'dancing' displays. This usually involves opening their wings and leaping vertically into the air with the legs dangling. Once one bird starts this, others will join in and the whole performance can even be initiated by a human pretending to be a dancing crane. Once the birds are paired off they are more likely to perform different displays involving stretching their necks vertically and trumpeting.

Migration

Cranes use two major migration routes. Birds from Scandinavia and the Baltic winter mainly in Spain and Portugal having rested in large numbers in Germany and France. Birds using the eastern flyway migrate to north-east Africa, Turkey and the Middle East after staging in Estonia and Hungary.

This information is taken from the BirdFile on the appropriate BirdGuides DVD-ROM. As well as video and sounds, our CD- and DVD-ROMs contain additional text on Voice, Sexing, Ageing, Food, Nests and Eggs and more.

For the purposes of our bird news services, Common Crane is classed as Scarce: broadly speaking, species that are covered in British Birds' annual review of scarce species (and forms of similar rarity).

Bewholme, E Yorks 27/08/2010	Salthouse, Norfolk 08/08/2010	Walsey Hills NOA, Norfolk 22/08/2010	Parc du Marquenterre, Picardie, France 20/08/2010	Hoveringham GPs, Notts 05/08/2010
Hoveringham GPs, Notts 06/08/2010	Walsey Hills NOA, Norfolk 05/08/2010	Vyra, Leningrad Oblast, Russia (Europe) 03/07/2010	Lakenheath Fen, Suffolk 15/06/2010	Lakenheath, Suffolk 15/06/2010

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Common Crane breeds in the following countries (Bird News Extra subscribers will see population statistics and information on trends for each country):

Armenia
Belarus
Britain
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Georgia
Germany
Latvia
Lithuania
Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Romania
Russia
Sweden
Turkey
Ukraine

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	WWT: Cranes and boats and planes	Tuesday 20th April 2010
	Project to reintroduce rare birds hit by air travel chaos.   read on
	RSPB: Common Cranes return to East Anglian fens after a gap of four centuries	Monday 20th July 2009
	New arrivals at RSPB's Lakenheath Fen are causing a stir.   read on
	RSPB: Carrot Fields to Cranes in 11 years	Thursday 17th May 2007
	Common Cranes have been found breeding in the Fens of East Anglia for the first time in 400 years.   read on
	Cranes to grace our skies once again	Monday 21st August 2006
	An exciting boost for the conservation of Common Cranes in Britain was announced at the 2006 British Birdwatching Fair, in the shape of The Great Crane Project.   read on
	An Influx of Common Cranes into the UK in Early 2002	Thursday 21st March 2002

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