White-naped Crane (Antigone vipio)
Common Name: White-naped Crane
Scientific Name: Antigone vipio
Physical Description: White-naped Cranes are elegant birds. Their plumage is white on the back of their neck, called the nape, the top of the throat, and the top of head. They have red feathers surrounding their red eyes. This red patch is one way in which the species is identified. The adults have dark gray plumage over most of their bodies with their wings and wing coverts being silver-gray. Juvenile White-naped Cranes have brown heads and pale throats. White-naped Crane chicks are yellow-brown with some darker spots. They are four feet tall and weigh 12 pounds on average. Males and females are virtually indistinguishable, although males tend to be slightly larger in size than females. Their wingspan can exceed 6 feet in length.
Habitat: They inhabit grassy marshes, wet sedge meadows and reed beds in broad river valleys. White-naped Cranes can also be found in lake depressions, boggy upland wetlands, freshwater lakes, farmland, and occasionally coastal flats.
Range: White-naped Cranes are native to northern Mongolia, southern Siberia, Korea, Japan and central China.
Diet: White-naped cranes are omnivores. They are excellent at digging up the seeds, roots, and tubers of aquatic plants. They also eat insects, small amphibians, and rodents.
Lifespan: In the wild, they live up to 15 years, while they can live up to 45 years in human cares.
Social Structure: White-naped Cranes breed from April to June. They build nests of dried sedges and grasses in mounds on open wetlands, where cover is still present to conceal nests. Female lay two eggs at two or three days apart. Egg incubation lasts 28 to 32 days. For White-naped Cranes, both parents take part in building the nest, incubating the eggs and rearing the chicks. The male takes the primary role in defending the nest against possible danger. Chicks can run upon hatching and they fledge about 75 days after hatching.
Status: Vulnerable1
Other: The White-naped Crane is a popular symbol of the Korean New Year celebration and is commonly featured in art and folklore. Cranes are the tallest of all flying birds and are found on every continent, except Antarctica and South America.
Like other crane species, White-naped Cranes love to dance! Their dancing is associated with courtship, but it is believed to be a normal part of motor development for cranes and can serve to thwart aggression, relieve tension and strengthen pair bonds. Dancing includes various movements such as bowing, jumping, running, stick or grass tossing, and wing flapping.
1 https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22692073/131927305#taxonomy
Scientific Name: Antigone vipio
Physical Description: White-naped Cranes are elegant birds. Their plumage is white on the back of their neck, called the nape, the top of the throat, and the top of head. They have red feathers surrounding their red eyes. This red patch is one way in which the species is identified. The adults have dark gray plumage over most of their bodies with their wings and wing coverts being silver-gray. Juvenile White-naped Cranes have brown heads and pale throats. White-naped Crane chicks are yellow-brown with some darker spots. They are four feet tall and weigh 12 pounds on average. Males and females are virtually indistinguishable, although males tend to be slightly larger in size than females. Their wingspan can exceed 6 feet in length.
Habitat: They inhabit grassy marshes, wet sedge meadows and reed beds in broad river valleys. White-naped Cranes can also be found in lake depressions, boggy upland wetlands, freshwater lakes, farmland, and occasionally coastal flats.
Range: White-naped Cranes are native to northern Mongolia, southern Siberia, Korea, Japan and central China.
Diet: White-naped cranes are omnivores. They are excellent at digging up the seeds, roots, and tubers of aquatic plants. They also eat insects, small amphibians, and rodents.
Lifespan: In the wild, they live up to 15 years, while they can live up to 45 years in human cares.
Social Structure: White-naped Cranes breed from April to June. They build nests of dried sedges and grasses in mounds on open wetlands, where cover is still present to conceal nests. Female lay two eggs at two or three days apart. Egg incubation lasts 28 to 32 days. For White-naped Cranes, both parents take part in building the nest, incubating the eggs and rearing the chicks. The male takes the primary role in defending the nest against possible danger. Chicks can run upon hatching and they fledge about 75 days after hatching.
Status: Vulnerable1
Other: The White-naped Crane is a popular symbol of the Korean New Year celebration and is commonly featured in art and folklore. Cranes are the tallest of all flying birds and are found on every continent, except Antarctica and South America.
Like other crane species, White-naped Cranes love to dance! Their dancing is associated with courtship, but it is believed to be a normal part of motor development for cranes and can serve to thwart aggression, relieve tension and strengthen pair bonds. Dancing includes various movements such as bowing, jumping, running, stick or grass tossing, and wing flapping.
1 https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22692073/131927305#taxonomy
