Large crane with long black legs and sharp yellowish beak. Adult: Black head. Unfeathered crown with red patch. Red eye. Broad white stripe behind eye connected to single white stripe running down hind-neck. Black front of neck. Grayish body and wings with long, poofy black and gray wing plumes. In flight, shows black flight feathers. Second year: similar to Adult Breeding, but paler. First year: Begins obtaining muted adult plumage. Juvenile: Feathered crown with entirely plain grayish or cinnamon plumage.

Length: 120 (cm) Wingspan: 85 (cm)

Habitat:

Wetlands, meadows, bogs, lakes, mudflats and fields.

Behavior:

Highly migratory. Forms flocks with other Common Cranes.

Feeding:

Diet consists of insects, grain, plant material and the occasional small mammal or bird.