Demoiselle cranes undertake one of the toughest migrations in the world….as tough as that of the

Bar-headed Geese

From late August through September, they gather in flocks of up to 400 individuals and prepare for their flight to their winter range. During their migratory flight south, demoiselles fly like all cranes, with their head and neck straight forward and their feet and legs straight behind, reaching altitudes of 16,000-26,000 feet (4,875-7,925 m). Along their arduous journey they have to cross the Himalayan mountains to get to their over-wintering grounds in India. Many die from fatigue, hunger and predation from golden eagles.

The Demoiselle Crane is known as the Koonj (कूंज, کونج, ਕੂੰਜ) in the languages of North India, and figure prominently in the literature, poetry and idiom of the region. Beautiful women are often compared to the koonj because its long and thin shape is considered graceful. Metaphorical references are also often made to the koonj for people who have ventured far from home or undertaken hazardous journeys. In Khichan, Rajasthan in India, villagers feed the cranes on their migration and these large congregations have become an annual spectacle. The name koonj is derived from the Sanskrit word kraunch, which is a cognate Indo-European term for crane itself, In the mythology of Valmiki, the composer of the Hindu epic Ramayana, it is claimed that his first verse was inspired by the sight of a hunter kill the male of a pair of Demoiselle Cranes that were courting. Observing the lovelorn female circling and crying in grief, he cursed the hunter in verse. Since tradition held that all poetry prior to this moment had been revealed rather than created by man, this verse concerning the Demoiselle Cranes is regarded as the first human-composed meter. How does the English name of the Crane come about? Queen Marie Antoinette of France gave the demoiselle crane its name. Demoiselle means maiden, or young lady, in French (one is more familiar with "mademoiselle"). The queen was enchanted by the crane's delicate and maidenly appearance. Here's the response from N S Prashanth ("Daktre") who is very knowledgeable on the subject: "Nice record Deepa! I see that the most recent southern Karnataka record is by Shivaprakash from Kollegal (south-west of Bangalore). He includes the following interesting notes on its previous rare sightings in and around Mysore as comments in his record (see linked checklist). He too has sighted a solitary bird amid Black-headed Ibis. Thought you may find this useful. "These have been recorded at Yelandur & Nanajangudu (nearby area) reported by Phythian-Adams (1940), Asian Mid-winter waterfowl census 23.1.1992 at Maddur Kere near the place where earlier recorded by VIjayalaxmi Rao, Guruprasad P & others and on 28.01.2001 in KRS backwaters by Shivaprakash A, Ramesh S & Mohankumar M. References: Phythian-Adams, E. G. 1940. Small game-shooting in Mysore. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 41: 594-603 Shivaprakash, A. 2002a. Re-occurrence of Demoiselle Crane in Mysore district. Newsletter for Birdwatchers: 42(1):8" And he also gives the reference list on eBird, here Here's the factsheet for this bird: Class AVES Order GRUIFORMES Suborder GRUES Family GRUIDAE Name (Scientific)Grus virgo Name (English) Demoiselle crane Name (French) Grue demoiselle Hindi: Karkara, Koonj

Here is a beautiful video (link provided by David d’Costa), showing how these birds migrate at such incredible heights, crossing the snowy peaks: