Demoiselle crane

Anthropoides virgo

A small elegant crane with black breast plumes and white ear tufts, famous for migrations over dry steppes and high mountains.

Key facts

Demoiselle crane (Anthropoides virgo) is an omnivore animal classified as Bird · Gruiformes · Gruidae.
Primary habitats are grassland · desert · freshwater, with a range across Palearctic · Afrotropical · Indomalayan.
Activity is diurnal, sociality is herd, and conservation status is LC (Least Concern).
A small elegant crane with black breast plumes and white ear tufts, famous for migrations over dry steppes and high mountains.
Uses dry grassland, semi-desert, farmland, and open areas near lakes, with wetlands and cropland used in winter.

Habitat range map

Native rangeOccasional / Transient

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

Uses dry grassland, semi-desert, farmland, and open areas near lakes, with wetlands and cropland used in winter.

The body is blue-gray, the face and neck are black, and long white plumes trail behind the eyes. It is slim and small for a crane.

Flocks feed together and migrate in large formations. Breeding pairs duet and perform jumping displays.

Grass seeds, grain, legumes, insects, and small animals are taken while walking over dry ground.

Eggs are laid in a shallow ground scrape with sparse cover. Precocial chicks walk with the parents soon after hatching.

The species remains low-risk because of its broad range and large numbers, though disturbance and power-line collisions matter locally.