Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center
The Cranes
Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan
Threats: Direct Exploitation
In general, hunting and trapping do not now constitute an overwhelming threat
to cranes. For several species and populations, however, direct exploitation has
been a critical factor in the past, and hinders current protection and recovery
efforts.
Overhunting
Hunting of cranes is prohibited in most countries where they occur. The most serious
problem involving the legal hunting of cranes occurs along the Afghanistan-Pakistan
border, where Eurasian Cranes, Demoiselle Cranes, and the Central population of
Siberian Cranes pass during the spring and autumn migrations, and where crane
hunting is a long-standing tradition. Sport hunting of the more abundant species
still occurs, and in some areas has been reinstituted. From a strict management
standpoint, the main threat associated with legal sport hunting involves the lack
of accurate information on population status, harvests, and the impacts of hunting
on specific populations. Accidental shooting is a significant concern in the case
of the Whooping Crane and the other rare species (Lewis et al. 1992b).
Subsistence hunting of cranes is relatively uncommon, but does occur in limited
portions of Africa, Asia, and North America. In the past, crane populations
have tolerated such hunting, and could theoretically continue to do so if the
kill rate remained below the recruitment rate. However, the impact of subsistence
hunting is likely to become increasingly acute as human populations grow, firearms
become increasingly available, cultural traditions of restraint weaken, and
habitat continues to be lost. It has been an intermittent problem in areas where
rural human population density is high, most commonly in parts of Africa and
China.
Poaching
Laws prohibiting the killing of cranes are widely ignored and poorly enforced
in many countries. Most instances of poaching involve shooting, but trapping and
other forms of exploitation have been reported. Cranes that are subject to poaching
are usually used for food. In some cases, parts of the cranes have been used for
their supposed medicinal properties. Crane feathers have reportedly been sold
in Hong Kong for the production of fans.
Live trapping for commercial trade
Live trapping of cranes takes place both legally and illegally. In most cases,
cranes are trapped for commercial purposes, usually for export, but also for sale
in domestic markets. Grey and Black Crowned, Demoiselle, Blue, Wattled, and Sarus
Cranes are the species most affected. The majority of documented cases of live
trapping for trade come from Africa (Urban and Gichuki 1991, Mafabi 1991, W. Tarboton
pers. comm.). About 100 prefledged Demoiselle Cranes are captured and sold each
year in the Kalmykia region of Russia, but this practice is not thought to present
a critical threat to the local population (which is estimated at more than 30,000).
Live trapping for domestication
In some countries, cranes are captured and kept as pets. Sometimes adults are
taken, but more often crane chicks are captured and hand-raised. Blue Cranes,
Grey and Black Crowned Cranes, and Brolgas are the most commonly domesticated
species (e.g., Mafabi and Pomeroy 1988). In Pakistan, where many people keep Demoiselle
and Common Cranes in their yards as pets, trappers capture and sell cranes (Ahmad
and Shah 1991).
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U.S. Geological Survey