Black-necked crane

Black-necked crane
Black-necked crane in Ladakh
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Gruiformes
Family: Gruidae
Genus: Grus
Species:
G. nigricollis
Binomial name
Grus nigricollis


The black-necked crane (Grus nigricollis) is a medium-sized crane in Asia that breeds on the Tibetan Plateau and remote parts of India and Bhutan. It is 139 cm (55 in) long with a 235 cm (7.71 ft) wingspan, and it weighs 5.5 kg (12 lb). It is whitish-gray, with a black head, red crown patch, black upper neck and legs, and white patch to the rear of the eye. It has black primaries and secondaries. Both sexes are similar. Some populations are known to make seasonal movements. It is revered in Buddhist traditions and culturally protected across much of its range. A festival in Bhutan celebrates the bird while the Indian union territory of Ladakh has designated it as the state bird.[3][4]

  1. ^ BirdLife International (2020). "Grus nigricollis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T22692162A180030167. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22692162A180030167.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  3. ^ Khajuria, Sanjay (1 September 2021). "Snow leopard, Black necked crane declared state animal and birds in Ladakh". The Times of India.
  4. ^ "Ladakh declares snow leopard its state animal, black-necked crane state bird". The Statesman. 1 September 2021.