Common crane
Scientific name: Grus grus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Overview
The common crane, also known as the Eurasian crane, is a bird of the family Gruidae, the cranes. A medium-sized species, it is the only crane commonly found in Europe besides the demoiselle crane and the Siberian crane that only are regular in the far eastern part of the continent. Along with the sandhill crane, demoiselle crane and the brolga, it is one of only four crane species not currently classified as threatened with extinction or conservation dependent on the species level. Despite the species' large numbers, local extinctions and extirpations have taken place in part of its range, and an ongoing reintroduction project is underway in the United Kingdom.
From the Wikipedia article “Common crane”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Conservation status
Least concern on the IUCN Red List, as recorded on Wikidata, citing The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021.3.
Where it lives
The Catalogue of Life records it in: Europe & Northern Asia (excluding China); North America.
Common names
Also known in English as Crane.
Names in other languages (13)
- Arabic
- كركي شائع
- Bengali
- লক্ষ্মণ সারস
- Chinese
- 灰鹤
- French
- Grue cendrée
- German
- Kranich
- Hindi
- यूरेशियाई सारस
- Indonesian
- Burung jenjang Eurasia
- Japanese
- クロヅル
- Persian
- درنای اوراسیایی
- Portuguese
- grou, Grou-comum, grou-eurasiático
- Russian
- серый журавль
- Spanish
- Grulla común
- Turkish
- Bayağı turna
Related animals
Sources
-
Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names and range.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: The Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — conservation status, names in other languages. Q4764, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “Common crane”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — Andreas Eichler, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
- Range map — CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026