At the beginning of every year, our most veteran photo workshop leader gets excited about leading clients from January to March 2018 on Hokkaido Photography Tours. Every year, one species of bird stands out among all the amazing birding photo ops in Hokkaido. The Red-crowned crane is one many treasures for birding photographers that you can capture while visiting Hokkaido with Japan Dreamscapes.
The cranes are a protected species and designated a National Treasure of Japan, and they are often referred to as the snow ballerinas when they perform their graceful courtship dance. They bow to one another than, raise their heads towards the sky and sing in unison just as they begin their courtship dance. It seems as if the Red-crowned cranes are performing moves like the arabesque, as they extend their legs and throw their wings wide and establish a seemingly impossible balance as the cranes court each other. The assemblé is another pose that modern ballerinas would be envious because of how easily the cranes perform it. The cranes jump with one leg into air and again fully extend their wings as part of the courtship performance to ignite a spark of romance. The pair or the entire flock will leap into the air a the same time commencing in the courtship dance. These performances are all parts of a Hokkaido Photo Tour and something we encourage you to see with your own eyes and cameras.
The Red-Crowned Crane, Tancho as it is known in Japanese, stands at 150 to158 cm (4ft to 5 ft) tall weighing 8 to 11 kg (17 to 25) pounds with a large wingspan measuring 200 to 260 cm (6.5 ft to 8.5 ft) and live more than 60 years. Wow! Imagine their size and watching the ballet performance!
The red-crowned cranes are the only crane species in the world that have white primary feathers. The adult's foreheads and crown are covered with bare red skin. Males and females are virtually indistinguishable, but males tend to be slightly larger in size.
While photographing this event, our lead photography workshop leaders recommends using the camera's continuous shutter release mode with spare memory cards on hand. It is best not to try to save space on your card by shooting each frame as you anticipate it; you will be sure to miss out of the perfect shot. During the annual Hokkaido Photo Tour in February, the groups spend two to three full days with the Red-Crowned Cranes proving ample time to photograph them.