Species Encyclopedia: Red-necked Crane

The Red-necked Crane is a genus of Craniformes, family Crasidae, and has three subspecies: the named subspecies and the Indochinese subspecies. , Australian subspecies. It is a large wading bird with a body height of about 180 cm and a wingspan of 220-250 cm. It is the tallest flying bird in existence. Distributed in southwestern Asia and Australia, it inhabits grassy plains, paddy fields, swamps and forest edges. Often alone or in pairs and family groups, they are timid and alert. It is a first-level protected animal in China.

The whole body feathers are roughly light gray, the head, throat and upper neck are bare and featherless, the skin is rough and granular, and the color is bright red. This color will only appear after they are sexually mature, and during breeding More colorful, nestlings and immature birds do not have such bright colors. The top of the head is smooth and grey-green. The primary coverts and primary flight feathers are black; the inner secondary flight feathers and tertiary flight feathers are extended and cover the light gray tail feathers. The iris is orange, the mouth is gray-green, and the feet are pink.

They often forage in pairs or in family groups near water and in the wilderness, with the most frequent foraging activities in the early morning and evening. Mainly feeds on fish, frogs, shrimps, lizards, grains and aquatic plants. The call is loud and persistent, usually in pairs day and night on the ground or in flight. When calling, the neck is straightened and the mouth is pointed toward the sky. The breeding period is from May to August, and they nest in open grasslands and swamps with trees or shrubs. 2 eggs are laid in each clutch, and 1 egg is occasionally seen. The female bird incubates the eggs, and the male bird guards them. Both parents take care of the young birds.