This article will cover one of the mostmost interesting and large birds. This is a crane. In total, 7 species of such birds inhabit Russia. Of them the common and numerous is the common gray crane.
Gray cranes nest in western and northernEurope, in many territories of Russia (to the basin of the Kolyma and Transbaikalia), in China and in Northern Mongolia. Also, they are seen a little in Altai, in Tibet and Turkey. In wintertime, cranes, like most birds, usually migrate to the south: to East and North Africa, to Spain, France, to the Middle East, to India and to China (south and east).
Their nesting sites:in marshland and in floodplains of rivers (marshy). In case of a lack of wetlands, they can settle near agricultural land. Cranes usually choose more elevated places for wintering, rather densely covered with grassy vegetation.
Males and females do not differ much from each other.friend externally. The predominant color of adults is gray. Some feathers are only slightly black-colored: primary feathers (primary, secondary, tertiary, and opaque), as well as tail feathers (their tops).
On the crown of the bird, feathers are almost absent, and the area of bare skin on it is reddish. A gray crane always walks with a red "cap" on its head (the photo clearly demonstrates this).
The lower part of the neck, its sides, part of the head (back)and the chin has a brownish black color. On the neck and head of the bird there is a sharp white strip that runs along the sides of the head to the rear edge, as well as on the outside of the neck.
This is a rather large bird:height - 115 cm, and the wings have a span of up to 2 meters. Weight of males reaches 6 kg, and females - slightly less (5.900 kg). Coloring plumage allows the bird to mask in the woods from enemies. The beak reaches sizes up to 30 cm. Gray with red ends the young gray crane has a feather. The limbs of the bird are dark.
Gray Crane - Monogamous Bird.She keeps her pair for life. Only if the female or male dies, then the surviving bird finds another companion to life. And another couple may be formed in case of unsuccessful long attempts to have offspring.
From April to July, the breeding season lasts.As a rule, a pair is formed before the flight to the place of future nesting. After arriving at the scene, the female and male arrange the most original ritual dances. They represent bouncing, flapping their wings and an important prancing gait.
Above or near water, a plot of land is selected.(relatively dry), necessarily among dense vegetation (thickets of reeds, etc.). This is the place for the nest. The male and female announce the choice of a suitable place with a drawling voice. Thus they mark their territory.
The nest itself is large (more than 1 m in diameter).It is built from the most diverse material. Usually 2 eggs are laid by the female. The incubation period lasts up to 31 days. Both male and female hatch eggs. Shortly after birth, the chicks may leave the parent nest. Their full plumage comes in about 70 days.
Crane gray, as noted above, byArriving home begins to dance in a peculiar way. He does it either alone or in a flock. During this period, the birds are very careful, so all this can only be observed from afar. Cranes on nesting places usually never form mass clusters, that is, pairs nest far from each other.
Female and male build the nest very quickly andcarelessly. As a result, it is just a bunch of firewood collected from nearby areas. Inside the nest is a tray lined with dry grass. As a rule, older birds occupy their nests (last year). Such a nest may serve a couple of years for a couple of cranes, the birds just update it a little every year.
Gray Crane in Russia is represented by twosubspecies - western and eastern. they differ little from each other. The border of their distribution, as well as their subspecific independence, is studied relatively poorly in the territory of the country today. Approximately we can say that the border that separates these two subspecies, extends along the Ural Range. The western subspecies lives in European Russia, and eastern in Asiatic.
Moreover, it is known that for wintering a gray crane fromthe European part of the country flies to Africa (Morocco, Egypt, etc.), and from the eastern part (inhabiting mainly in Siberia) to the north of India or to China. An insignificant part of the gray cranes overwinter in the Transcaucasus.
At the very beginning of the mating season, their gray cranesfeathers cover with mud and silt. This allows them to mask and hide from predators, making them less noticeable during periods of incubation and hatching of their chicks.
Crane gray, like other species, begins its flight with a smooth run down the wind, accelerating and revealing huge wings just before take-off.
Gray omnivores are fairly omnivorous:feed on plants (tubers, leaves, stems, acorns, berries, etc.), invertebrates (worms and insects), vertebrates (snakes, frogs, rodents and fish). The crane can also feed itself with grain, even creating a threat to the crop.
