I know of a lot of birds in the crane family. We have whooping cranes around here where there is water. We have a man-made lake close by and there is a whooping crane there that is lovely.
The sarus crane (Antigone antigone) is a large non-migratory crane found in parts of the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia and Australia. The tallest of the flying birds, standing at a height of up to 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in),[3] they are conspicuous and iconic[4] species of open wetlands. The sarus crane is easily distinguished from other cranes in the region by the overall grey colour and the contrasting red head and upper neck. They forage on marshes and shallow wetlands for roots, tubers, insects, crustaceans and small vertebrate prey. Like other cranes, they form long-lasting pair-bonds and maintain territories within which they perform territorial and courtship displays that include loud trumpeting, leaps and dance-like movements. In India they are considered symbols of marital fidelity, believed to mate for life and pine the loss of their mates even to the point of starving to death. The main breeding season is during the rainy season, when the pair builds an enormous nest "island", a circular platform of reeds and grasses nearly two metres in diameter and high enough to stay above the shallow water surrounding it. Sarus crane numbers have declined greatly in the last century and it has been suggested that the current population is a tenth or less (perhaps 2.5%) of the numbers that existed in the 1850s. The stronghold of the species is in India, where it is traditionally revered and lives in agricultural lands in close proximity to humans. Elsewhere, the species has been extirpated in many parts of its former range.
In flight, the black primaries contrast with the otherwise grey wings (Bharatpur, India).
The adult sarus crane is very large with grey wings and body; a bare red head and part of the upper neck; a greyish crown; and a long greenish-grey pointed bill. In flight, the long neck is held straight, unlike that of an heron, which folds it back, and the black wing tips can be seen; the crane's long pink legs trail behind them. This bird has a grey ear covert patch, an orange-red iris and a greenish-grey bill. Juveniles have a yellowish base to the bill and the brown-grey head is fully feathered.[5] [show]Measurements
The bare red skin of the adult's head and neck is brighter during the breeding season. This skin is rough and covered by papillae, and a narrow area around and behind the head is covered by black bristly feathers. The sexes do not differ in plumage although males are on average larger than females; male sarus of the Indian population can attain a maximum height of about 180 cm (5.9 ft) making them the world's tallest extant flying bird. The weight of nominate race individuals is 6.8–7.8 kg (15–17 lb), while five adult sharpii averaged 8.4 kg (19 lb). Across the distribution range, the weight can vary from 5 to 12 kg (11 to 26 lb), height typically from 115 to 167 cm (45.5 to 65.5 in) and the wingspan from 220 to 250 cm (86.5 to 98.5 in).[7] View of the head
While the northern populations are amongst the heaviest cranes, alongside the red-crowned and wattled cranes, and the largest in their range, birds from Australia tend to be smaller.[8] In Australia, the sarus can easily be mistaken for the more widespread brolga. The brolga has the red colouring confined to the head and not extending into the neck.[7] Body mass in Australian sarus cranes was found to average 6.68 kg (14.7 lb) in males and 5.25 kg (11.6 lb) in females, with a range for both sexes of 5 to 6.9 kg (11 to 15 lb). Thus, Australian sarus average about 25% lighter than the northern counterparts and are marginally lighter on average than brolgas.[9] Distribution and habitat
The species has historically been widely distributed on the lowlands of India along the Gangetic plains, extending south to the Godavari River, west to coastal Gujarat, the Tharparkar District of Pakistan,[10] and east to West Bengal and Assam. The species no longer breeds in Punjab, though it winters regularly in the state.[11] Sarus cranes are rare and occur in very low numbers in West Bengal and Assam,[12] and are no longer found in the state of Bihar. In Nepal, its distribution is restricted to the western lowland plains, with most of the population occurring in Rupandehi, Kapilvastu, and Nawalparasi districts.[13][14]
There are two distinct populations of sarus cranes in South-east Asia: the northern population in China and Myanmar, and the southern population in Cambodia and Vietnam.[15] The sarus used to extend to Thailand and further east into the Philippines, but may now be extinct in both these countries. In 2011, 24 captive bred cranes raised from five original founders were reintroduced into Thailand.[16] In Australia they are found only in the northern parts, and are partly migratory in some areas.[17] The global range has shrunk and the largest occupied area is now in India. With marshlands largely destroyed, these cranes are increasingly dependent on wet paddy fields in India. Although now found mainly at a low elevation on the plains, there are some historical records from highland marshes further north in Harkit Sar and Kahag in Kashmir.[18] The sarus crane breeds in some high elevation regions such as near the Pong Dam in Himachal Pradesh, where populations may be growing in response to increasing rice cultivation along the reservoir.[13][14] In rice-dominated districts of Uttar Pradesh, sarus crane abundance (estimated as occupancy) was highest in the western districts, intermediate in the central districts, and minimal in the eastern districts. Sarus crane abundance was positively associated with percentage of wetlands on the landscape, and negatively with the percentage of area under rice cultivation.[19]
Surprisingly little is known of sarus crane ecology from Australia. Sarus crane breeding records (confirmed sightings of nests with eggs, or of adult birds with flightless young) are known from only three locations, all in the Gulf Plains in Queensland state. Two records are from near Normanton town: one of adults with flightless chicks seen about 30 km west of the town,[20] and another of adults incubating eggs seen 7-km south of the town.[21] The third record is a one-month study that provides details of 32 nests located within 10-km around Morr Morr cattle station in the Gilbert River floodplains.[22] Other published records provide insufficient information to be useful, and there is a need to carefully map breeding areas of sarus cranes in Australia.[23] They are uncommon in Kakadu National Park, where the species is often hard to find among the more numerous brolga.[23] Flocks in the non-breeding season are commonly seen in the Atherton Tablelands in eastern Queensland.[24]
Sarus cranes preferentially use wetlands[25] or uncultivated patches amid flooded rice paddies (locally called khet-taavadi[26]) for nesting in India. Breeding pairs are territorial and prefer to forage in natural wetlands, though wet crops like rice and wheat are also frequented.[13][14][27] In south-western Uttar Pradesh, sarus cranes were found in wetlands of all sizes with larger number in larger wetlands.[28]
This post was edited by WM BARR . =ABSOLUTE TRASH at October 3, 2017 11:20 PM MDT
I saw that. I wonder if I could love someone so much that when they died, I would no longer crave pizza and starve to death.
This post was edited by WM BARR . =ABSOLUTE TRASH at October 3, 2017 11:31 PM MDT
WM BARR . =ABSOLUTE TRASH 