Siberian Crane - Taxonomy and Systematics

Taxonomy and Systematics

The Siberian Crane was formally described by Peter Pallas in 1773 although Ustad Mansur, a 17th century court artist and singer respectively of Jehangir, illustrated a Siberian Crane (original in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg) about 100 years before Peter Pallas. The genus Megalornis was used for the cranes by Gray and this species was included in it, while Bowdler Sharpe suggested a separation from Grus and used the genus Sarcogeranus. The Siberian Crane lacks the complex tracheal coils found in most other cranes but shares this feature with the Wattled Crane. The unison call differed from that of most cranes and some authors suggested that the Siberian Crane belonged in the genus Bugeranus along with the Wattled Crane. Comparisons of the DNA sequences of cytochrome-b however suggest that the Siberian Crane is basal among the Gruinae and the Wattled Crane is retained as the sole species in the genus Bugeranus and placed as a sister to the Anthropoides cranes.