Cranes — East Asian

600 CE - 2016 CE

“Cranes are among the most severely threatened of all bird families. Virtually all 15 species have suffered significant reductions in their geographic distributions and population numbers. Whooping, red-crowned and Siberian cranes are currently listed as endangered. Six other species are considered vulnerable to extinction, and another is near threatened... They have been exploited for trade and commerce, and they have conflicted with humans for agricultural resources. Many species are reliant on the world's edangered wetlands for food and nest sites. Moreover, most cranes are migratory and thus, have requirements for survival that often span thousands of miles... Their world understands no political boundaries yet they are subject to the whims of local, regional and national governments in times of both decline and recovery.”

Most Pressing Issues

Wetland Loss

The loss of wetlands to agricultural expansion and growing human demand for water, on both breeding and wintering grounds.

Steppe Fires

Breeding birds are frequently threatened by fires in the steppe, grassland in southeastern Siberia.

Livestock Grazing

Livestock grazing causes disturbances and reduces the availability of suitable nesting habitat.

Dams

The Three Gorges Dam in the Yangtze basin, the proposed construction of a dam at the outlet to Poyang Lake, and the potential development of wetlands in the Demilitarised Zone greatly affects crane populations.

Hunting

Cranes are hunted for sport across Asia.

Historic Population

How You Can Help

The International Crane Foundation

The International Crane Foundation works worldwide to conserve cranes and the ecosystems, watersheds, and flyways on which they depend.

World Wildlife Fund China

World Wildlife Fund China’s efforts focus on protecting the plateau’s unique high altitude black-necked crane throughout the vast majority of its home range in western China.

Wildlife Conservation Society Mongolia

Wildlife Conservation Society Mongolia has identified the white-naped crane as a target species for its SCAPES (Sustainable Conservation Approaches in Priority Ecosystems) Project.

Wetlands International

Wetlands International is working with ICF, the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals and governments in Central Asia to improve the resilience of key wetlands for migratory waterbirds to climate change.