One of the 11 cranes on WAnimals
Birds · Gruiformes · Gruidae
Black Crowned Crane
Balearica pavonina
It faces a high risk of extinction in the wild over the medium term. See full glossary
The black crowned crane is one of the two African crowned cranes, with a spectacular crown of stiff golden feathers on its head and red and white wattles on the cheeks. Together with its eastern relative, it is the only crane in the world that perches in trees, thanks to a long hind toe that the others lost. It has disappeared from much of the Sahel through the drying out of wetlands and capture for the trade.
Weight
3 kg – 4 kg
Size
1 m – 1.1 m
Lifespan
25 years
Diet
Omnivore
Combines animal and plant food depending on availability.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
In pairs
Usually lives in pairs, sometimes for life.
Sighting difficulty
Moderate
Fun facts
- It is, with its eastern relative, the only crane in the world able to perch on branches: it keeps a long, grasping hind toe that the other cranes lost, a feature considered primitive within the group.
- Its courtship dance, with leaps, bows and tossing bunches of grass into the air, has inspired traditional dances in several West African cultures.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
- Habitat & environment
- Wetlands, floodplains and moist savannah of the Sahelo-Sudanian belt of West Africa
- Birth weight
- Precocial: born covered in down and leaves the nest within a few hours
- Size at birth
- Precocial: born covered in down and leaves the nest within a few hours
- Sexual maturity
- 3 years
- Gestation / incubation
- 30 days of incubation
- Litter / clutch size
- 3 eggs
Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balearica_pavonina
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapBest time: All year round in the Sahel, by day, on wetlands and floodplains; in the dry season it gathers at the few wetlands that hold out.
Where to watch it
Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Black Crowned Crane — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Wattled Crane
Bugeranus carunculatus
Demoiselle Crane
Grus virgo
Soemmerring's Gazelle
Nanger soemmerringii
Least ConcernCommon Crane
Grus grus
Grey Crowned Crane
Balearica regulorum
VulnerableCheetah
Acinonyx jubatus
How to help
The black crowned crane is classified as vulnerable. Organizations such as UICN, WWF y Wildlife Conservation Society work specifically on its conservation and that of its habitat; looking into their programs is a good starting point if you want to get involved.
It's documented in 6 real protected areas — part of why protecting these places matters for its conservation.
Keep exploring
Based on what we already know about black crowned crane.
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