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Cranes

Cranes are noteworthy birds found across most of the world, excluding Antarctica and South America, and are renowned for their long legs, long necks, and the unique ability to fly with their necks outstretched. There are 15 species within the Gruidae family, distributed into three genera: Antigone, Balearica, and Grus. These adaptable birds adjust their diet seasonally, consuming everything from small animals and eggs to grains and berries. In breeding, cranes build nests in shallow water and typically lay two eggs, with both parents involved in rearing the young. Their behavior ranges from solitary during breeding to sociable in large flocks outside the breeding season. Migration patterns vary greatly among species, with some traveling long distances and others remaining stationary. The survival of many crane species is threatened due to human activities. Distinguished by their varied and striking plumage, which is often influenced by habitat, cranes also feature bare skin on their faces that can change color when the bird is excited. Communication is vital, with their long coiled trachea enabling distinctive trumpeting calls that carry over great distances. Their evolutionary history is complex, with a fossil record dating back to the Eocene era and a suggested Old World origin. Crane mythology and symbolism are rich and diverse, with these elegant birds representing happiness, longevity, and vigilance in different cultures worldwide, and they have inspired various art forms, stories, and traditions.

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A photo of a Crane (Grus grus)

Crane

Grus grus
A photo of a Demoiselle Crane (Grus virgo)

Demoiselle Crane

Grus virgo
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Take a walk, look out of the window and log the birds that you see. Feel good about those little connections to nature.
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What Our Birders Say
Alex J
Friendly and helps to identify birds
Great birding app, good for logging your sightings, also has nice species guide. I'm enjoying the social aspect more than I expected, everyone seems friendly and helps to identify unknown birds. Good mix of newbies and experienced users.
Safira V
Birding and wellbeing app
Birda is an excellent platform to share your love of Birding and is a great tool of encouragement for a Birding Beginner like me. Birda has a very kind and supportive community of Birding enthusiasts. For me BIRDA is not only a BIRDING but also a WELLBEING App.
Sacha0508
Simply fantastic
I love this app, it puts so much fun into recording the birds I’ve seen and heard while I’m out and about. The interface is user-friendly and suitable for all ages. It’s great to collect badges and to review my “lists”.
Marlster24
Recommend for any bird watcher
Very wholesome app: I joined this app with a new interest in watching birds to help me find out what I was spotting. The community is very active in helping identify birds which is great and everyone is very kind so it’s just a nice wholesome community. I would definitely recommend this for any bird spotter 😃
Unbridled Discoveries
Great app for bird lovers
I love this app! It’s a wonderful way to track birding sessions, and also connect you with fellow birders. I also really like the unidentified bird section, it’s a great community tool to help figure out what a never-before-seen bird is!
Jake W
Great app
I use this app all the time as it’s quick and easy to log individual sightings or whole birding sessions. It’s an excellent way to meet new people and the forum is full of really friendly people. The challenges are a great way to get involved and learn more about birds. Cannot recommend it enough!
Jane N
A great app
Enjoying it immensely and finding it useful too. Recording the different birds and counting them is showing me how the present climate is affecting them all. I've trebled the numbers by planting native hedging. A great app.
Nedz53
Really useful
Downloaded to give it a try, everything worked perfectly, recorded my first bird watching walk. Very impressed. Have already recommended to friends!
Emcil24
A Friendly Place
I love using the bird app, I have a pretty good knowledge of birds. But I do have some gaps in it, so it’s nice to have a safe space to check on a sighting to confirm the species. It’s really enjoyable and I love the badges you can collect. It’s like a real life Pokémon go.
Alice J
Awesome Birding Community
I absolutely love the community aspect of this app. The app is so user friendly and has fun interactive challenges to get you out birding. I’ve tried others but since I’ve started using Birda I’ve not gone back!
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