CRANES, STORKS, FLAMINGOS - Knowt

TAXONOMIC CLASSIFICATION OF STORKS

Kingdom: Animalia (Animals)

Phylum: Chordata (Chordates)

Class: _

Order: _

Family: _

Class: Aves (Birds)

Order: Gruiformes (Cranes, rails, and allies)

Family: Gruidae (Cranes)

Genus: Balearica

What's the scientific name of these two sepcies?

Black crowned crane

Grey crowned crane

• Balearica pavonina - Black crowned crane

• Balearica regulorum - Grey crowned crane

Genus: Anthropoides

What's the scientific name of these 2 species?

Demoiselle crane

Blue crane

• Anthropoides virgo - Demoiselle crane

• Anthropoides paradiseus - Blue crane

Scientific name of common crane

Grus grus

Scientific name of sandhill crane?

Grus Canadensis

Scientific name of White-Naped crane?

Grus Vipo

Scientific name of hooded crane?

Grus monacha

Scientific name of black-necked crane?

Grus nigricollis

Scientific name of Brolga?

Grus rubicunda

Scientific name of red crowned crane (japanese crane)?

Grus japonensis

Scientific name of whooping crane?

Grus americana

Scientific name of siberian crane?

Grus leucogeranus

Cranes are found on all continents except?

Antartica

South america

Most species are migratory, following traditional flyways learned through rather than instinct

Visual memory

They communicate with loud ____- like calls

Buggle

Their social displays include?

Preening

Defense like calls

Defensive posturing

Spectacular dances

Cranes fly in what shaped formation?

V-shaped formation

Mating in cranes begins in what season?

Spring

How many eggs do cranes lay? And how many survives?

2 eggs are laid, but only 1 survives most of the time

Cranes reach sexual maturity in about?

4 years

Lifespan of cranes

20-40 years

What's the wingspan of cranes?

7.5 feet

Do cranes have webbed or unwebbed feet?

Unwebbed- to help them wade in shallow waters

What's the most unique anatomical feature of cranes?

Elongated trachea with intrasternal loop

What type of feeders are cranes?

Opportunistic feeders

During autumn and winter what do cranes eat?

roots, seeds, grains, tubers, left over crops

During breeding season what do cranes eat?

Protein rich foods (insect, small mammals, amphibians)

Cranes with shorter bills like -_ cranes feed on?

Black-crowned cranes, insect and grasses

Cranes with longer bills like crane and crane feed on?

Australian and whooping crane , crustaceans and other aquatic organisms?

For prolonged procedures we chemically restrain cranes using what?

Isoflurane and sevoflurane

For minor procedures and transport of cranes what do we use for sedation?

Lidocaine, xylocaine, bupivacaine

Body temperature of cranes

39-41 C

Normal heart rate of cranes

120-200 beats/min

respiratory rate of cranes

15-40 breaths/min

What is the most significant threat that cranes face?

habitat loss and agricultural expansion

This is a disease in cranes that caused by protozoan parasites Eimeria grruis and E. reichenowi

Coccidiosis

Nematodiosis in cranes is caused by?

Capillaria spp, ascarids, gapeworms

A flavivirus transmitted by mosquitos

West nile virus

An alphavirus transmitted by mosquitos

Eastern equine encephalitis

This is a herpesvirus unique to cranes

gruid herpes virus 1

gruid herpes virus 1 causes?

Inclusion body disease of cranes

Aspergillosis in cranes is mostly caused by?

Aspergillus fumigatus

These cranes are classified as endangered

japanese cranes

whooping cranes

grey crowned cranes

This crane specie is classifies as critically endangered

Siberian crane

These cranes were regionally downlisted from critically endangered to endangered in 2025

Wattled cranes

This is the world's center for crane research and conservation

International crane foundation

TAXONOMIC CLASSIFICATION OF STORKS

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Aves

Order: _

Suborder:

Family: _

Order: Ciconiiformes (wading birds)

Suborder: Ciconiae (storks, ibises, spoonbills)

Family: Ciconiidae (storks)

They are among the oldest lineages of large wading birds, with fossil records dating back to the Eocene (over 30 million years ago)

Storks

Migration timing and routes are strongly tied to?

rainfall cycles, prey availability, and wetland conditions

Storks occupy what regions?

tropical, subtropical, and temperate regions.

Storks are _ breeders, often nesting in large groups for protection and resource sharing.

Colonial

Storks communicate through?

Bill clattering

A group of storks is most commonly called a?

Muster

A group of storks in flight are called?

Phalanx

Clutch size of storks ranges from?

2-5 eggs

Incubation of stork eggs

30 days

Why are populations of storks vulnerable to habitat loss, climate shifts, and disturbance?

They have a slow reproductive rate, usually raising only a few chicks per breeding season

Ecological role of storks

apex wetland foragers, controlling populations of fish, amphibians, reptiles, insects, and small mammals

The smallest specie of stork is?

Abdim's stork

The largest species of storks?

saddlebill and marabou storks

What specie of stork has the widest wingspan?

Marabou storks

Storks are known for using to glide and soar to great heights, minimizing the energy they expend during flight and migration

thermals (rising air currents)

When overheated, storks excrete watery feces and urine onto their legs. The evaporation of this moisture cools the blood vessels in their legs, a process known as_

Urohidrosis

Storks are opportunistic ___ with diets that shift depending on species, habitat, region, and season.

Carnivores

causes mass mortality events in wild waterbirds, including storks (e.g., Asian openbill), and spreads across countries via migratory flyways and poultry-wildlife interfaces, requiring coordinated One Health surveillance and rapid reporting

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI H5N1)

A filarial nematode infecting the pulmonary arteries and heart of storks, causing vascular and myocardial lesions.

Paronchocerca ciconarum

is a trematode parasite from the family Echinostomatidae that infects the intestines of storks

Chaunocephalus ferox

This program in Hyogo restored paddy fields and rivers, established captive breeding, and released birds with monitoring, leading to reestablished breeding in the wild—planned under IUCN guidelines and built around coexistence in rural landscapes

The Oriental White Stork program

They outline threats (habitat loss, pesticides), prioritized goals, and actions across Russia-China-Korea-Japan, emphasizing habitat management, population monitoring, and crosssector collaboration

The Oriental Stork Conservation Action Plan (2024)

They use captive breeding, reintroduction, anti-poaching, habitat protection, and community engagement, highlighting the need for long-term monitoring and integration of socioeconomic factors.

Milky Stork conservation