Hooded Crane (Grus monacha) — Vulnerable

Hooded cranes (Grus monacha), dark cranes with white heads and necks. — Hooded crane (Grus monacha), Kyushu, Japan.
Image: Alastair Rae from London, United Kingdom, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

At a glance

IUCN category: VU · Vulnerable
Animal group: Birds
Population trend: Decreasing
FaunaHub record reviewed: 2026-06-16
Checked against IUCN: Matches source — IUCN's 2025 global assessment of Grus monacha says VulnerableChecked 2026-10-09 against IUCN's Red List export published 2026-07-28 · assessment

Conservation overview

The hooded crane is a small, dark crane with a white head and neck, breeding in north-east Asia. It is assessed as Vulnerable.

Most of the world population winters at a few sites in Japan.

Range & habitat

Breeds in Siberia and China and winters mainly in Japan and Korea.

Major threats

Threats below are drawn from the authoritative sources listed on this page. For the current, complete assessment, see the IUCN Red List.

Loss of wetlands
Concentration at few wintering sites
Disturbance and disease risk

Why it matters

A crane that crowds into a handful of wintering wetlands, the hooded crane is a flagship for spreading and protecting wintering habitat in East Asia.

Gallery

A hooded crane portrait. — Hooded crane (Grus monacha).
Image: NasserHalaweh, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Sources

Sources for Hooded Crane

IUCN Red List — look up Hooded Crane (authoritative status)
BirdLife International

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is concentrating at few sites risky for the hooded crane?

A large share of the world population winters at just a few sites, so disease or habitat loss at one location could affect much of the species at once.

Why is the hooded crane Vulnerable?

Published assessments cite the loss of wetlands, dependence on few wintering sites, and disturbance and disease risk. See the IUCN Red List.