Common crane

Grus grus

A large migratory crane breeding in wetlands from Europe across Asia, with a gray body, black-and-white neck, and red crown.

Key facts

Common crane (Grus grus) is an omnivore animal classified as Bird · Gruiformes · Gruidae.
Primary habitats are freshwater · grassland · urban, with a range across Palearctic · Afrotropical · Indomalayan.
Activity is diurnal, sociality is herd, and conservation status is LC (Least Concern).
A large migratory crane breeding in wetlands from Europe across Asia, with a gray body, black-and-white neck, and red crown.
Breeds in bogs, marshes, lake edges, and river meadows, using farmland, shallow wetlands, and grassland on migration and in winter.

Habitat range map

Native rangeOccasional / Transient

Map: Ecoregions 2017 © RESOLVE (CC BY 4.0) · Natural Earth (PD)

Breeds in bogs, marshes, lake edges, and river meadows, using farmland, shallow wetlands, and grassland on migration and in winter.

The body is gray, the neck is black and white, and the crown has red bare skin. Drooping inner wing feathers can look like a tail.

Pairs and family groups travel together, forming large flocks during migration. Displays include loud duets, bows, and jumps.

Aquatic plants, grain, shoots, roots, insects, frogs, and small vertebrates are eaten, with spilled grain used in fields.

A plant platform nest is built on wet ground. Both adults incubate and rear chicks, which walk with the parents to feed.

Globally low-risk; wetland protection and management of migration stopovers remain important for regional populations.