Black-Necked Crane

Black-Necked Crane Latest News

The Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) has sterilised over 2,950 Free Ranging Dogs (FRD) to save Black-necked Cranes (Grus nigricollis) in Ladakh, whose chicks and nests were being attacked in alpine wetlands.

About Black-Necked Crane

• It is classed as a medium-sized member of the crane family.
• Other Names: It is locally known as “cha thung-thung” in Ladakh and “thungdung karma” in Arunachal Pradesh.
• Appearance: It has a largely whitish-grey body contrasted by a jet-black head and upper neck, splashes of red around the eye, and long, elegant legs built for wading through alpine bogs.
• Distribution: High altitude marshes and lakes of Tibetan Plateau (Tibet, Qinghai, Xinjiang, Gansu), Sichuan (China), and eastern Ladakh (India).
  • A small wintering population is also found in Sangti and Zimithang valleys of Arunachal Pradesh in India.
• Diet: These are carnivores and herbivores. They feed on the tubers of sedges, plant roots, earthworms, insects and other invertebrates, frogs.
• Breeding: The cranes breed at elevations between 2,600 and 4,900 metres, choosing gently sloping wetlands where they build simple nests of grasses and sedges.
  • The main breeding sites include the Changthang Cold Desert Wildlife Sanctuary, especially the wetlands of Hanle, Tso Kar, Nyoma, and nearby marshes.
• Cultural Significance: They hold a special place in Ladakh’s Buddhist culture. They are regarded as sacred birds and symbols of peace, purity and good fortune.
• Threats: Increasing human use of areas surrounding wetlands, expansion of linear infrastructure, growing tourism activities, habitat degradation, and the impacts of climate change.

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Conservation Status of Black-Necked Crane

• IUCN: Near Threatened
• CITES: Appendices I
• Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I

Source: DTE