Blue Crane | Anthropoides paradiseus
| Conservation Status |
Vulnerable (IUCN 3.1)
http://www.cites.org/eng/app/appendices.html
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| Scientific classification |
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| Kingdom: |
Animalia |
| Phylum: |
Chordata |
| Class: |
Aves |
| Order: |
Gruiformes |
| Family: |
Gruidae |
| Species: |
Anthropoides paradiseus |
facts
Length |
1,10 – 1,20m |
Mass: (male) |
4,9 – 5,6kg |
(female)
|
3,9 – 4,65kg |
Wingspan |
0,9 – 1,0m |
Toes |
4 |
Eggs |
2 |
Egg Size |
9,3 x 6,0cm |
Egg Weight |
185g |
Breeding period |
30 – 33 days |
Breeding season |
September - February |
The Blue Crane (Anthropoides paradiseus) is also known as the Paradise Crane or the Stanley Crane. It is a tall (100–120cm) ground-dwelling bird. It weighs from 4 to 6.2kg. This bird is pale blue-gray in colour with a white crown, a pink bill, and long, dark gray wingtip feathers which trail to the ground.
1. Introduction of the Blue Crane to HESC
The Blue Crane is the National bird of South Africa. A status it deserves. The blue crane however can be a pest to farmers as they start to eat the wheat before it is harvested. Some of the farmers therefore poison these beautiful birds. Luckily due to the Nature Conservation marketing and education of the matter, farmers now co-operate with Blue Crane Study Groups. Roode’s friendship with neighbouring farmers has led to the HESC’s current inhabitation of 16 Blue Crane birds. The famers are constantly on the look-out for Blue Crane eggs on their land and instead of destroying them in fear of protecting their harvest they give them to HESC for preservation of this delicate endangered species.
2. Facts
- The national bird of South Africa is the blue crane and its distribution is almost entirely restricted to the country.
- Blue Crane birds are a symbol of peace and resolution.
- The Blue Crane's head is on the South African 5 cent coin.
- In Xhosa the Blue Crane bird’s name is “indwe”. The Xhosas believed that if you kill a Blue Crane, a member of your family will die. When a tribesman distinguished himself with deeds of valour, or any other form of meritorious conduct, he was often presented with the feathers of this bird by his tribe's chief. 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). This meant that if trouble arose, these men would reinstate peace and order.
- The Blue Crane is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.
3. Habitat
Blue Cranes are found in Southern Africa and about 99% of the specie is resident in South Africa. In the last two decades the Blue Crane has almost 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 northern Namibia. Isolated breeding pairs are occasionally found in five neighboring countries.
Blue Cranes are partial to the dry, grassy uplands. They feed on seeds and insects and spend little time in wetlands. They are altitudinal migrants, 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.
4. Decline
While it is still common in parts of its historic range, approximately 21,000 individuals are all that remain of this once prolific species. It saw a sudden decline in population from around 1980 and is now classified as vulnerable. Most of these birds are not breeding pairs. 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).
The South African government has stepped up legal protection of the Blue Crane. Other conservation measures are focusing on research, habitat management, education, and recruiting the help of private landowners.
5. Bibliography
