12 The African Crowned Crane
The Grey Crowned Crane (Balearica regulorum) is a bird in the crane family Gruidae. It inhabits the dry African savannah south of the Sahara, although it nests in somewhat wetter habitats. They can also be found in marshes, cultivated areas and grassy flatlands near rivers and lakes from eastern Uganda and Kenya to South Africa. This animal does not migrate. There are two subspecies. The East African B. r. gibbericeps (Crested Crane) can be found from the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo through Uganda, where it is the national bird, and from Kenya to eastern South Africa. It has a larger area of bare red facial skin above the white patch than the smaller nominate species, B. r. regulorum (South African Crowned Crane), which breeds from Angola down to South Africa.
