Sandhill Crane

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Sandhill Crane in the UK

The Sandhill Crane is in Category A of the British List on the strength of four records. The first was on Fair Isle on 26 and 27 April 1981. The second was in south Shetland in September 1991. The third was found on Orkney in September 2009 and then moved through Caithness and the Highlands. The fourth, an adult, was at RSPB Loch of Strathbeg, Aberdeenshire, in September 2011, then flew down the east coast and stopped at Boyton Marshes, Suffolk, in early October. An older record from County Cork in 1905 is Irish, not British.

Where and when to see a Sandhill Crane

You cannot plan for one. All four British birds made landfall in northern Scotland, three on the Northern Isles, and three of the four came in the second half of September after Atlantic weather systems. A crane flying south will follow the coast, as the 2011 bird did, passing over Northumberland, Durham, Cleveland, Yorkshire and Norfolk before settling in Suffolk for six days. News of any crane on a Scottish island in autumn is worth a second look.

Habitat, diet and field notes

Habitat: Wet meadows (very rare).
Diet: Seeds, insects.
Field note: American vagrant; grey.

How to identify a Sandhill Crane

A tall grey crane, a little smaller than a Common Crane, with a long neck, long dark legs and a bushy "bustle" over the tail. The whole head and neck are plain grey with a paler cheek. Adults have a bare red patch on the forehead and crown. There is no black on the neck. The body is grey, often stained rusty brown on the back and wings. In flight the wingtips are dark but contrast less than on Common Crane. Young birds have a brownish head and neck with no red.

Call and song

A loud, rolling, rattling bugle, "karr-r-r-ooo", drier and more wooden than the clear trumpeting of a Common Crane. Lone vagrants call mostly in flight. Heard something you cannot place? Bird Hear identifies UK birds from a 10 second recording, free in your browser.

Confusion species

• Common Crane: Common Crane has a black face and foreneck with a broad white stripe down the side of the neck; Sandhill's head and neck are plain grey.
• Grey Heron: A Grey Heron flies with its neck tucked back in an S, while cranes fly with the neck stretched straight out.

Related guide Rare birds in the UK.

Conservation status and Birdedex points

In the Birdedex the Sandhill Crane is a Legendary tier bird, worth +50 points when you log one. It is not on the Red or Amber lists in Birds of Conservation Concern 5.

Recent UK sightings

Similar birds

• White-tailed LapwingLegendary · Wet meadows (very rare)
• Lesser White-fronted GooseEpic · Wet meadows (very rare)
• Demoiselle CraneLegendary · Open ground (very rare)
• Little BustardLegendary · Open country (very rare vagrant)
• Allen's GallinuleLegendary · Marshes (very rare)
• Alpine AccentorLegendary · Mountains (very rare)

Sandhill Crane: quick answers

Has a Sandhill Crane ever been seen in the UK?

Yes, four times in Britain: Fair Isle in 1981, Shetland in 1991, Orkney in 2009 and Aberdeenshire to Suffolk in 2011. Ireland has an older record, from County Cork in 1905.

Where can I see a Sandhill Crane in the UK?

There is no site. The species has not been recorded in Britain since 2011. If you want to see cranes here, Common Crane now breeds in the Fens, the Norfolk Broads and Somerset, and can be seen at several reserves.

How does a Sandhill Crane get to Britain?

It breeds across Canada, Alaska and north-east Siberia and migrates south in large flocks in September. Birds caught by fast-moving Atlantic depressions can be carried east. That fits the timing of three British records and their arrival on the Northern Isles.

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