Red-Crowned Cranes
Meet one of the world’s rarest crane species. We are home to female ‘Ruby’ and male ‘Hiiro’.
A scarlet crown wading through wetlands
The red-crowned is one of the world’s largest cranes and most striking crane species, renowned for its snowy white plumage and the vibrant red patch of exposed skin on its head. With their long, sharp beaks, these cranes expertly hunt prey as they wade gracefully through their wetland homes. Unlike most cranes, the red-crowned crane is adapted to thrive in deep water, where it forages for food and builds its nests.
- IUCN Red List Status: Endangered (at very high risk of extinction in the wild)
- Type: Bird
- Habitat: Wetlands of China, Mongolia, Russia, and the Korean peninsula
- Diet: Omnivore – grasses, fish, and aquatic invertebrates
- Size: 1.5 metres
- Weight: 8 to 9.5 kilograms
facts about our animals
Fun Facts about Red-Crowned Cranes
Juvenile cranes have a mix of brown and gray plumage which turns white when they reach two years of age.
These birds have a wingspan of 2.5 metres.
This species is well adapted to cold temperatures.
Red-crowned cranes are monogamous and mate for life.
They can communicate aggression by inflating the red cap on their heads.
When calling to each other, red-crowned cranes will make a rattling call that sounds like “kar-r-r-o-o-o”.
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