Black-necked Cranes
Cranes
The Black-necked Crane (Grus nigricollis) is a large, whitish-gray crane. It is also known as Tibetan Crane.
Description
It has a black head and upper neck apart from a whitish postocular patch (bare skin patch behind the eye) and red crown patch. It has black primaries (longest wing feathers) and secondaries.
Distribution / Range
The Black-necked Crane breeds on the Tibetan Plateau, with a small population in adjacent Ladakh, India.
It has six wintering areas, mostly at lower altitudes in China (including Caohai Lake), but it also winters in Bhutan. In India, the crane breeds near the High Altitude Lakes of Ladakh such as Tso Kar lake.
The crane is one of the spiritual creatures for the people of the area and is pictured alongside many of their deities in the monasteries of the region.
The estimated population of the species is between 5,600 and 6,000 individuals. The major threat to its survival are the cultivation of its breeding grounds. Also the opening up of the Ladakh valley to tourism has directly affected the crane over the last few years.
It is legally protected in China, India and Bhutan.
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