About the grey crowned crane...

The grey crowned crane can be found in the dry deserts of Saharan Africa. It is the national symbol of Uganda, and the Ugandan flag features a proudly strutting crane surrounded by black, yellow and red stripes. The gray crowned crane is a very distinctive bird: aside from its spiky crest of feathers, this bird can dance! Cranes jump and bow as part of their mating rituals, using their red throats to make loud honking noises. Since cranes' mating season varies according to rainfall patterns, they tend to dance more often during the rainy season. Some superstitions say that cranes dancing and honking is a sign that rains will come!

Meet the grey crowned crane...

"Oh, hello there!

Welcome to my lab - you'll have to excuse me, I wasn't expecting company and I'm a bit, um, frazzled. And don’t give me any static about my messy roost, I've been busy with my studies! Busy with doing experiments, I am! No time for hooting and hollering. Well, some hooting. Did you know that some people think that the honk of a crane means rain will come? Well, when I heard that rumor, I did what I always do - ran a scientific experiment! And my hypothesis was correct: there's no positive connection between my honking and rainy days. So now, I'm on to my next experiment: how to fix a bad hair day!"