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Encyclopedia > Blue Crane
Blue Crane

Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Gruiformes
Family: Gruidae
Genus: Anthropoides
Species: A. paradisea
Binomial name
Anthropoides paradisea
(Lichtenstein,AAH, 1793)

The Blue Crane (Anthropoides paradisea), also known as the Stanley Crane and the Paradise Crane, is the national bird of South Africa. It is a tall, ground-dwelling bird, but is fairly small by the standards of the crane family. It is 1.06 m (3.5 ft) tall and weighs about 4 kg (8.8 lbs). This crane is pale blue-gray in colour with a white crown, a pink bill, and long, dark gray wingtip feathers which trail to the ground. The conservation status of a species is an indicator of the likelihood of that species remaining extant either in the present day or the near future. ... This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it. ... Scientific classification redirects here. ... For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation). ... Typical Classes See below Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. ... For other uses, see Bird (disambiguation). ... Genera Grus Anthropoides Balearica Bugeranus Cranes are large, long-legged and long-necked birds of the order Gruiformes, and family Gruidae. ... Genera Grus Anthropoides Balearica Bugeranus Cranes are large, long-legged and long-necked birds of the order Gruiformes, and family Gruidae. ... Species Anthropoides is a small genus of cranes. ... Latin name redirects here. ... Anton August Heinrich Lichtenstein (1753 - 1816) was a German zoologist. ... Year 1793 (MDCCXCIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ... Genera Grus Anthropoides Balearica Bugeranus Cranes are large, long-legged and long-necked birds of the order Gruiformes, and family Gruidae. ...


Blue Cranes are birds of the dry, grassy uplands which feed on seeds and insects and spend little time in wetlands. They are altitudinal migrants, generally nesting in the upper grasslands and moving down to lower altitudes for winter. Many occupy agricultural areas.


Of the 15 species of crane, the Blue Crane has the most restricted distribution of all. While it remains common in parts of its historic range, and approx. 25,700 individuals remain, it began a sudden population decline from around 1980 and is now classified as vulnerable. Year 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar). ...


In the last two decades, the Blue Crane has largely disappeared from the Eastern Cape, Lesotho, and Swaziland. The population in the northern Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Gauteng, Mpumalanga and North West Province has declined by up to 90%. The majority of the remaining population is in eastern and southern South Africa, with a small and separate population in the Etosha Pan of northern Namibia. Occasionally, isolated breeding pairs are found in five neighboring countries. The Eastern Cape is a province of South Africa. ... Capital Bloemfontein Largest city Bloemfontein Area  - Total Ranked 3rd 129,480 km² Premier Beatrice Marshoff (ANC) Population   - 2001   - 1996   - Density Ranked 8th 2,706,776 2,633,504 21/km² (2001) Languages Sotho (62%) Afrikaans (14%) isiXhosa (9. ... KwaZulu-Natal, often referred to as KZN, is a province of South Africa. ... Capital Polokwane Largest city Polokwane Area  - Total Ranked 5th 123,900 km² Premier Mbhazima Shilowa (ANC) Population   - 2001   - 1996   - Density (2001) Ranked 4th 5,273,637 4,929,368 43/km² (Ranked 3rd) Languages Races Black (97. ... Capital Johannesburg Largest city Johannesburg Area  - Total Ranked 9th 17,010 km² Premier (List) Mbhazima Shilowa (ANC) Population   - 2001   - 1996   - Density (2001) Ranked 2nd 8,837,172 7,348,423 520/km² (Ranked 1st) Languages isiZulu (21. ... Province motto Omnia labor vincit Capital Nelspruit Largest city Nelspruit Area  - Total Ranked 8th 79,490 km² Premier (List) Thabang Makwetla (ANC) Population   - 2001   - Density Ranked 7th 3,122,994 39/km² (2001) Languages SiSwati (30. ... Categories: South Africa stubs | North West Province | Provinces of South Africa ... The Etosha pan is a large salt pan in the north of Namibia. ...


The primary causes of the sudden decline of the Blue Crane are human population growth, the conversion of grasslands into commercial tree plantations, and poisoning: deliberate (to protect crops) or accidental (baits intended for other species, and as a side-effect of crop dusting. An agricultural aircraft is an aircraft that has been built or converted for agricultural use -- usually aerial spraying of pesticides or fertiliser. ...


The South African government has stepped up legal protection for the Blue Crane. Other conservation measures are focusing on research, habitat management, education, and recruiting the help of private landowners.


The Blue Crane is a bird very special to the amaXhosa, who call it indwe. When a man distinguished himself by deeds of valour, or any form of meritorious conduct, he was often decorated by a chief by being presented with the feathers of this bird. After a battle, the chief would organise a ceremony called ukundzabela – a ceremony for the heroes, at which feathers would be presented. Men so honoured – they wore the feathers sticking out of their hair – were known as men of ugaba (trouble) - the implication being that if trouble arose, these men would reinstate peace and order. The Xhosa people live in South Africa. ...


The Blue Crane is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies. The AEWA - The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds - is an independent international treaty developed under the auspices of the UNEP/Convention on Migratory Species. ...


External links

  • Anthropoides paradisea #1


    Anthropoides paradisea #2


    Anthropoides paradisea #3


  • Problems seeing the videos? See media help.
  • International Crane Foundation's Blue Crane page
  • The Blue Crane in the Northern Cape, South Africa
  • Blue Crane videos on the Internet Bird Collection
  • blue crane coin, issued by South Africa,
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

  Results from FactBites:
 
NPWRC :: The Cranes (4543 words)
Blue Cranes migrate locally across elevation gradients, spending the breeding season in higher elevation grasslands and moving to lower elevations for the fall and winter.
In the semi-desert habitats of the Karoo and in the agricultural fields of southwest Cape Province, the population is stable or increasing.
Blue Cranes are also affected by development pressures and high human population density, which have combined to exacerbate the incidence of intensive livestock grazing, disturbance, active persecution, and loss of habitat to agricultural expansion (both crop farming and grazing).
Blue Crane - ICF (674 words)
Blue Cranes are one of two species of cranes that do not have bare, red skin on their heads.
Blue Cranes, the national bird of South Africa, are endemic (only found in a certain region) to southern Africa, with more than 99% of the population occurring within South Africa.
The Blue Crane is the national bird of South Africa.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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