Afghanistan (P), Albania, Algeria, Armenia (B) (P), Austria (E) (B), Azerbaijan (B) (NB) (P), Bangladesh, Belarus (B) (P), Belgium (P), Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria (NB) (P), Cambodia, Canada, China (mainland), Croatia (Local Name: Hrvatska) (NB) (P), Cyprus (P), Czech Republic (B), Denmark (B) (P), Egypt, Eritrea, Estonia (B) (P), Ethiopia, Finland (B) (P), France (B) (NB) (P), Georgia (B) (P), Germany (B) (P), Greece (NB) (P), Hungary (NB) (P), India, Iran [Islamic Republic of] (NB) (P), Iraq (NB), Israel (NB) (P), Italy (NB) (P), Japan, Jordan (NB) (P), Kazakhstan (B), Kyrgyzstan (P), Laos, Latvia (B) (P), Lebanon, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Lithuania (B) (NB) (P), Luxembourg (NB) (P), Macedonia [The Former Yugoslav Republic of] (NB), Malta, Mongolia (B), Montenegro (B) (NB) (P), Morocco, Myanmar (NB), Nepal, Netherlands Antilles (B) (NB) (P), North Korea, Norway (B), Pakistan, Palestinian Authority Territories (P), Poland (B) (NB) (P), Portugal (NB), Qatar, Romania (B) (NB) (P), Russia (Asian) (B), Russia (Central Asian) (B) (P), Russia (European) (B) (P), Saudi Arabia, Serbia (B) (NB) (P), Slovakia (Slovak Republic) (NB), Slovenia, South Korea, Spain (NB) (P), Sudan, Sweden (B) (P), Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic (NB), Tajikistan, Tunisia (NB), Turkey (B) (NB) (P), Turkmenistan, Ukraine (B) (NB) (P), United Kingdom (B) (NB), USA, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen.
Vagrant to Bahrain, Djibouti, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong (China), Iceland, Ireland, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands, United Arab Emirates.
Scandinavia and north-eastern Europe to north-central China and Russian Far East; also Turkey and Caucasus, in Armenia and possibly Azerbaijan. Winters in France, Iberian Peninsula, north-western and north-eastern Africa, Middle East, Pakistan, India and southern and eastern China.
 
Population
Estimated population is 360,000 - 370,000 (2010).
Common Crane (Grus grus) [XC844549]
by Martin Billard from Arrondissement du Blanc (near Saint-Michel-en-Brenne), Indre, Centre-Val de Loire, France (flight call)
Common Crane (Grus grus) [XC832459]
by Alan Dalton from Sauve, Gard, Occitanie, France (nocturnal flight call, wing beats)
Nest
A large pile of vegetation with a hollow in the top, on the ground or in shallow water.
Eggs (Guide)
2; slightly glossy, color ranging from buff through olive to red-brown, speckled with red or dark brown.
Subspecies
Sometimes divided into western (grus) and eastern (lilfordi) subspecies.
The Reader's Digest Book of British Birds 1980, 3rd Edition, Drive Publications Ltd ISBN 0 340 25308 8
Birds in Colour Campbell, B., 1960, Penguin Books Ltd
The Pocket Guide to Nest and Eggs Fitter, R.S.R., 1954, Collins
RSPB Handbook of British Birds Holden, P., Cleeves, T., 2002, A & C Black ISBN 0 7136 5713 8
Birds of Britain and Europe Sterry, P., et al., 2001, AA Publishing ISBN 0 7495 3068 5
The Popular Handbook of British Birds Hollom, P.A.D., 1973, H.F. & G. Witherby Ltd ISBN 0 85493 002 7