"It's a big surprise that we have a chance to observe huge numbers of grey cranes flock together in Sanmenxia wetland once again after a span of 5 years!" on November 14th , a good news came from Sanmenxia Management Office of Henan Yellow River Wetland National Nature Reserve. Grey cranes together with white swans, as national second-class protected animals , came to Sanmenxia again for winter.

   During the routine patrol from November 12th to 14th , staffs of Management Office continuously observed a flock of gray cranes perching on the Yellow River Wetland in the urban-rural integration demonstration area of Sanmenxia. Near 30 cranes, whose habitat is far from the shore, are dimly visible through naked eye observation. Working staffs observed them and their long-term flight and rest through special observation equipment. It is inferred that thees cranes are all in good health.

It is reported that the grey crane is a large wading bird, which is a national second-class protected bird. The last time a group of grey cranes was found in Sanmenxia was in the early winter of 2015.

In recent years, Sanmenxia has deeply implemented the strategy of ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin, and the ecological environment has greatly improved. "Grey cranes are alert, timid and afraid of people. When they are moving and foraging, there is always a crane nearby as a guard, so, cranes has high requirements for their habitat environment. In 2021, many grey cranes have been found to 'return' to Sanmenxia, which is also a manifestation of excellent ecological environment in our city." Zhang Shuwei said, a staff of the Management Office.