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Blue Crane - Anthropoides paradiseus
Pairi Daiza, June 2008.
Interesting facts: It is an emblematic bird of South Africa as it is endemic from this land. They are revered by the Zulu and Xhosa tribes and there is a apparently a strict hierarchy relation to which members of the tribe can wear certain feathers of this bird. The bird also has a spectacular courtship involving not only dancing and pirouetting but also the couple running together with the female on the lead.
The Blue Crane , also known as the Stanley Crane and the Paradise Crane, is the national bird of South Africa. It is a tall, ground-dwelling bird, but is fairly small by the standards of the crane family. It is 100–120 cm tall and weighs 4.0–6.2 kg . This crane is pale blue-gray in colour with a white crown, a pink bill, and long, dark gray wingtip feathers which trail to the ground. Unlike most cranes, it has a relatively large head and a proportionately thin neck.
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