Black Crowned Crane

Black Crowned Crane
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Gruiformes
Family:	Gruidae
Genus:	Balearica
Species:	B. pavonina
Binomial name
Balearica pavonina (Linnaeus, 1758)

The Black Crowned Crane (Balearica pavonina) is a bird in the crane family Gruidae.

It occurs in dry savannah in Africa south of the Sahara, although in nests in somewhat wetter habitats. There are two subspecies: B. p. pavonina in the west and the more numerous B. p. ceciliae in east Africa.

This species and the closely related Grey Crowned Crane, B. regulorum, which prefers wetter habitats for foraging, are the only cranes that can nest in trees. This habit, amongst other things, is a reason why the relatively small Balearica cranes are believed to closely resemble the ancestral members of the Gruidae. It is about 1 m (3.3 ft) long, has a 1.87 m (6.2 ft) wingspan and weighs about 3.6 kg (8 lbs).

Like all cranes, the Black Crowned Crane eats insects, reptiles, and small mammals. It is endangered, especially in the west, by habitat loss and degradation.

External links

• BirdLife Species Factsheet
• International Crane Foundation's Black-crowned Crane
• Crowned Crane (Balearica pauonina) from Cranes of the World, by Paul Johnsgard
• The Cranes

Gallery

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  In flight

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  In the Philadelphia Zoo

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  Head of a Black Crowned Crane (Weltvogelpark Walsrode)

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  Crown and plumage

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  Eating