Barn Owl vs Red-crowned Crane
Tyto alba compared with Grus japonensis
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Barn Owl | Red-crowned Crane |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Tyto alba | Grus japonensis |
| Order | Strigiformes | Gruiformes |
| Family | Tytonidae | Gruidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Endangered |
| Length | 35.0 cm (13.8 in) | 150.0 cm (59.1 in) |
| Wingspan | 90.0 cm (35.4 in) | 250.0 cm (98.4 in) |
| Weight | 350.0 g (12.35 oz) | 8900.0 g (313.94 oz) |
| Diet | Almost exclusively small mammals, especially voles and mice. Hunts using extraordinary hearing to locate prey … | Omnivorous — fish, amphibians, insects, grasses, and waste grain. Forages in wetlands and agricultural fields. |
| Clutch Size | 2-16 | 2 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Size Comparison
Habitat Comparison
Barn Owl
Open farmland, grasslands, and marshes. Nests in barns, church steeples, tree cavities, and purpose-built nest boxes.
Red-crowned Crane
Freshwater marshes, bogs, and wet grasslands for breeding. Winters in coastal mudflats, estuaries, and rice paddies.
Song & Call Comparison
Barn Owl
An eerie, drawn-out rasping shriek 'shreeeeee' — not a hoot. Also gives hissing, snoring, and bill-snapping when disturbed. Chicks call with a persistent rasping hunger call.
Red-crowned Crane
Spectacular unison 'bugling' call: a clear, resonant, far-carrying trumpet 'kru-ru-ru' given by paired birds simultaneously. Among the most majestic bird calls in Asia.
Geographic Range & Migration
Barn Owl
The most widespread owl and one of the most widespread land birds, found on every continent except Antarctica.
Red-crowned Crane
Eastern Asia — breeds in northeastern China, southeastern Russia, and Hokkaido, Japan. Winters in Korea and eastern China.
Conservation Status
Barn Owl
Red-crowned Crane
How to Tell Them Apart
Barn Owl
Pale golden-buff upperparts with delicate grey mottling. Pure white heart-shaped face and white to pale buff underparts. Ghostly white appearance in flight.
Pale pinkish hooked bill nearly concealed by the facial disc
Red-crowned Crane
White body plumage with black secondary flight feathers and throat. Bare red crown patch. Black face and neck. One of the most elegant crane species.
Long, straight, olive-green bill
About These Birds
Barn Owl
The barn owl has the most asymmetrical ears of any owl, giving it the finest auditory localization ability in the animal kingdom. It can catch prey in complete darkness using sound alone. The barn owl's distinctive heart-shaped face acts as a parabolic dish, funneling sound to its offset ears.
Red-crowned Crane
The red-crowned crane is one of the rarest crane species and a potent symbol of longevity and fidelity in East Asian culture. Their elaborate unison call and dancing displays have inspired art and folklore for millennia. The resident population on Hokkaido, Japan, recovered from about 33 birds in 1952 to over 1,800 today.