Siberian crane

The United Nations Environment Programme ( In spite of decades of conservation efforts, seven of the world’s 15 crane species were in danger of extinction by the 1970s, with similar trends being seen in ducks, geese, swans and other waterbirds. Worldwide, 40 per cent of known waterbird populations are on the wane, having soared to 59 per cent in Asia. Population growth, hunting and rising demands on limited water supplies all contribute to the loss and degradation of wetland habitats on which these birds, including the Siberian Crane, depend. Each year, Siberian Cranes travel up to 5,000 kilometers from their breeding grounds in Russia’s northern Siberia along two migration routes, passing Kazakhstan, to southern China and Iran where they spend their winters. As they fly the long distances, they encounter some of this Earth’s highest peaks and harshest deserts, but their survival is being threatened as the wetlands, where they rest during their flight, are being drained. The conservation scheme, known as the Siberian Crane Wetland Project, in its tenth year, brings together the four nations, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the International Crane Foundation (ICF) through It is the first of its kind to apply a ‘flyway’ approach to stabilize and sustaining the remaining Siberian Cranes and other waterbirds. To date, it has played a catalytic role in boosting the conservation and rehabilitation of more than 7 million hectares of wetlands, equivalent to the size of I...

It has been already 30 years since the Breeding Center for the endangered species of cranes has been an integral part of the Oka Nature Reserve. The essential purpose of its existence is conservation of the gene pool of the rare and endangered species of cranes of Russia, and in the first place – the Siberian Crane. The initiative to create such a center on the territory of the former USSR belongs to George Archibald and Ronald Sauey – the founders of the International Crane Foundation. In 1974 they addressed the leading ornithologist Dr. Vladimir Flint with a proposition of a joint venture in reestablishing the population of the Siberian Crane, and in 1976 a Congress between the Russian and American specialists was held in Moscow. This Congress marked the beginning of the “Siberian Crane” Project which was started under the umbrella of the Soviet-American Agreement of Collaboration in the field of nature preservation, which was signed in 1972. The first stage of the project consisted of creating a genetic pool of the Siberian Crane in captivity. In the zoos of the world there were very few cranes at the time, and those that were there did not breed. There were no Siberian Cranes at all in the zoos of the Soviet Union. It was decided that a Breeding Center be organized on the territory of an already existing nature reserve – one that was not too far from Moscow and one that had enough potential to sustain such an enterprise. The Oka Reserve in the Ryazan Region was chosen....

Justification Justification of Red List Category This long-lived crane qualifies as Critically Endangered owing to the likelihood that its global population will decline extremely rapidly over the next three generations following the development of the Three Gorges Dam, a large number of other dams on the Yangtze River and its tributaries, and now a proposed dam at the outlet to the Poyang lake in China which threatens the wintering grounds used by the vast majority of individuals. If the impacts of these developments prove to be less damaging than is feared, the species may warrant downlisting. Population justification The population is estimated at 3,500-4,000 individuals, based on a count of 3,750 at Poyang Lake in 2008 (Yu Changhao et al. 2008) and counts of 3,400 at Momoge in May 2011 and at Poyang in early 2012. The western subpopulation numbers only a single individual aside from reintroduced birds. Trend justification This species' population is suspected to have decreased rapidly over the last three generations, in line with levels of wetland conversion (for development and agriculture), hunting (especially on passage) and disturbance. Construction of the Three Gorges Dam has changed the hydrological pattern of the lower Yangtze River, resulting in lower water levels in winter. Poyang Lake thus drains more rapidly into the Yangtze during the low water period. In addition, as of 2001, over 9,600 dams had been constructed on the five rivers feeding into Poyang Lake ...

On the afternoon of March 16, 2018, a man riding his motorcycle along the bank of the Liao River near Shenyang, Liaoning Province, was surprised to see a flock of large white birds across the river. He stopped and used his mobile phone to take photos, but the noise alarmed the birds, which took flight. Not far away, a group of volunteers was also watching these birds. They were conducting a synchronized migration survey of the white birds – Siberian Cranes. The Siberian Crane is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, with a global population of only 4,000 birds. Nearly all Siberian Cranes spend the winter in and around Poyang Lake in southeastern China. On migration from their breeding grounds in the Russian Arctic, Siberian Cranes depend on a chain of critical staging sites in the Amur-Heilong River basin of northeast China to rest and refuel on their long journey. This group at the Liao River numbered 118 individuals. The cranes were stopping over at the Liao River on their journey north from Poyang Lake to rest and feed before the long trip to the breeding grounds thousands of kilometers to the north. Typically, disturbance affects the birds’ ability to prepare for the remainder of their migration. But this time, the situation was a little special. In March 2018, four poisoned Siberian Cranes were discovered by volunteers along the Liao River in Northeast China. The two surviving cranes, left, are prepared for transport to a bird rescue center. The two ot...

The Siberian crane, also known as the Siberian white crane or the snow crane, is a bird of the family Gruidae, the cranes. They are distinctive among the cranes: adults are nearly all snowy white, except for their black primary feathers that are visible in flight, and with two breeding populations in the Arctic tundra of western and eastern Russia. The eastern populations migrate during winter to China, while the western population winters in Iran and (formerly) in Bharatpur, India. Source: Source: English: Siberian Crane Catalan: Grua siberiana Czech: jeřáb bílý Danish: Snetrane German: Schneekranich Spanish: Grulla Siberiana Spanish (Spain): Grulla Siberiana Finnish: lumikurki French: Grue de Sibérie Croatian: Sibirski ždral Hungarian: hódaru Icelandic: Snjótrana Italian: Gru siberiana Japanese (romaji): sodegurozuru Japanese: ソデグロヅル Lithuanian: Sibirinė gervė Dutch: Siberische Witte Kraanvogel Norwegian Nynorsk: Snøtrane Norwegian: Snøtrane Polish: żuraw biały Portuguese: grou-siberiano Russian: Стерх Slovak: žeriav biely Serbian: Sibirski ždral Swedish: snötrana Ukrainian: Журавель білий Chinese: 白鹤 Chinese (Traditional): 白鶴 Authorities recognizing this taxonomic concept: Avibase taxonomic concepts (current): Siberian Crane ( Leucogeranus leucogeranus) Avibase taxonomic concepts v. 01 (August 2013): Siberian Crane ( Grus leucogeranus) Avibase taxonomic concepts v. 02 (May 2014): Siberian Crane ( Grus leucogeranus) Avibase taxonomic concepts v. 03 (March 2015): Siberian...

Two Siberian Cranes preparing for flight at the Yellow River Delta National Nature Reserve in Shandong Province, China on Dec. 22, 2018. Picture provided by Jiangxi Provincial Wildlife Rescue and Breeding Center. Authors: Zhang Tianqing, Jiang Zhong Yu, Yang Biyu | Reprinted with permission from Jiangxi Daily “Found it! Found it! After 219 days, it is still alive, No. S26!” After seeing the photo of “Love”, Wang Zhiru, Director of Jiangxi Academy of Forestry, finally felt a load lifted from his mind. No. S26 is a wild Siberian Crane, a national first-class protected animal named Love. As Jiangxi province’s first wildlife of such importance to be rescued in cooperation with another province, Love’s unknown whereabouts for 219 days affected thousands of people’s feelings, including Liu Qi, Secretary of Jiangxi Provincial Party Committee. So what magic power does this lovely Siberian Crane have that draws so much attention? Saving the lost Siberian Crane On April 24, 2018, Li Zengming and his family went to visit relatives in Nanchang, Jiangxi province. When passing Uncle Li Mingquan’s reservoir, they found a bird struggling in the water. Worried about its safety, Li turned the car around and drove to the shore. Then he picked up a branch, took off his clothes and went into the water to save it without hesitation. When he approached the bird, he found it was a Siberian Crane, a rare animal he once saw a photo of on a bulletin board. “I saw the Siberian Crane with dull, glassy...