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{{Short description|Species of bird}}
{{Redirect-distinguish-text|Australian crane}}
{{For|the Royal Australian Navy ships named after the bird|Brolga (ship)}}
{{Good article}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Brolga
| image = Brolga-1-Healesville,-Vic,-3.1.2008 edit.jpg
| image_caption = Brolga (''Antigone rubicunda''), [[Healesville Sanctuary]], Victoria 
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name=IUCN>{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2016 |title=''Antigone rubicunda'' |article-number=e.T22692067A93335916 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22692067A93335916.en |access-date=20 February 2022}}</ref>
| status2 = CITES_A2 
| status2_system = CITES 
| status2_ref = <ref>{{Cite web|title=Appendices {{!}} CITES|url=https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php|access-date=2022-01-14|website=cites.org}}</ref>
| genus = Antigone
| species = rubicunda
| authority = ([[George Perry (naturalist)|Perry]], 1810)
| range_map = Antigone rubicunda dist.png
| range_map_caption = Distribution in red
| synonyms_ref= <ref name="AFD"/>
| synonyms = 
*''Ardea rubicunda''
*''Grus antarctica'' Illiger, 1816
*''Mathewsia rubicunda'' (Iredale, 1911)
*''Grus rubicundus''
*''Grus australasianus''
}}

The '''brolga''' ('''''Antigone rubicunda'''''), formerly known as the '''native companion''', is a bird in the [[crane (bird)|crane]] family. It has also been given the name '''Australian crane''', a term coined in 1865 by well-known [[ornithology|ornithologist]] [[John Gould]] in his ''[[The Birds of Australia (Gould)|Birds of Australia]]''.<ref name="Gould" />

The brolga is a common, gregarious [[wetland]] bird species of tropical and south-eastern [[Australia]] and New Guinea. It is a tall, upright bird with a small head, long beak, slender neck, and long legs. Its plumage is mainly grey, with black wing tips, and it has an orange-red band on its head. The brolga's courting dance is similar to that of other cranes. The nest is built of wetland vegetation, either on an elevated piece of land or floating on shallow water in marshland, and usually two eggs are laid. Incubation takes 32 days, and the newly hatched young are [[precocial]]. The adult diet is omnivorous and includes plant matter, invertebrates, and small vertebrates.<ref name="Johnsgard" />

Although the bird is not considered endangered over the majority of its range, populations are showing some decline, especially in southern Australia, and local action plans are being undertaken in some areas.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book|title=Crane Conservation Strategy|last1=Veltheim|first1=Inka|last2=Sundar|first2=K.S. Gopi|publisher=International Crane Foundation, Baraboo, USA.|year=2019|editor-last=Mirande|editor-first=Claire M.|pages=371–381|chapter=Species review: Brolga (Grus rubicundus)|editor-last2=Harris|editor-first2=James T.}}</ref> It has featured on the [[Coat of arms of Queensland|Queensland coat of arms]] since 1977 and was formally declared as the bird emblem of the state in 1986.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/bird-emblem|title=Bird emblem|publisher=[[Queensland Government]]|access-date=26 July 2021}}</ref>

==Taxonomy==
[[File:John Gould Australian brolga.jpg|thumb|upright|left|An 1865 brolga illustration from ''Birds of Australia'' by [[John Gould]]]]
When first described by the naturalist [[George Perry (naturalist)|George Perry]] in 1810, the brolga was misclassified as a species of ''Ardea'',<ref name="AFD">{{cite web|url=https://biodiversity.org.au/afd/taxa/Grus_%28Mathewsia%29_rubicunda|title=Species ''Grus (Mathewsia) rubicunda'' (Perry, 1810) |author=Australian Biological Resources Study|date=16 April 2014|work=Australian Faunal Directory|publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Australian Government|access-date=29 June 2017|location=Canberra, Australian Capital Territory}}</ref> the [[genus]] that includes the [[heron]]s and [[egret]]s. It is, in fact, a member of the [[Gruiformes]]—the [[order (biology)|order]] that includes the [[crake]]s, [[rail (bird)|rail]]s, and [[crane (bird)|crane]]s, and a member of the genus ''[[Antigone (bird)|Antigone]]''.<ref name=ioc/> Ornithologist John Gould used the name ''Grus australasianus'' when he wrote about it and noted it to be widespread in the north and east of Australia. He also recorded that it was easy to tame, and that [[James Macarthur (Australian politician)|James Macarthur]] had kept a pair at his home in [[Camden, New South Wales|Camden]]. Calling it the Australian crane, he mentioned that its early colonial name had been native companion.<ref name=Gould>{{cite book|author=Gould, John|year=1865|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_YkcDAAAAQAAJ|quote=Gould Grus australasianus.|title=Handbook to The birds of Australia, Volume 2|pages=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_YkcDAAAAQAAJ/page/n299 290]–92|publisher=self}}</ref> The [[Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union]] made brolga, a popular name derived from [[Gamilaraay language|Gamilaraay]] ''burralga'', the official name for the bird in 1926.<ref name=Veyret>{{cite web|url=http://www.aszk.org.au/docs/brolga_husbandry_manual_arazpa__2008.pdf |title=Brolga (''Grus rubicunda''): Husbandry Guidelines 2008 |author=Veyret, Lynda |year=2008 |publisher=Australasian Society of Zoo Keeping |access-date=2013-03-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121224151825/http://www.aszk.org.au/docs/brolga_husbandry_manual_arazpa__2008.pdf |archive-date=2012-12-24 }}</ref>

In 1976, it was suggested that the brolga, [[sarus crane]] (''Antigone antigone''), and [[white-naped crane]] (''Antigone vipio'') formed a natural group on the basis of similarities in their calls. This was further confirmed by [[Molecular phylogenetics|molecular studies]] of their DNA.<ref name=CB08>{{cite book |title=Systematics and Taxonomy of Australian Birds|author=Christidis, L.|author2=Boles, W. E. |year=2008 |publisher=CSIRO Publishing |location=Canberra |isbn=978-0-643-06511-6 |page=119}}</ref> These also showed that the brolga is more closely related to the white-naped crane than it is to the [[morphology (biology)|morphologically]] more similar sarus crane.<ref name=Veyret/>

The brolga was formerly placed in the genus ''[[Grus (bird)|Grus]]'', but a [[molecular phylogenetic]] study published in 2010 found that the genus, as then defined, was [[polyphyletic]].<ref>{{ cite journal | last1=Krajewski  | first1=C. | last2=Sipiorski | first2=J.T. | last3=Anderson | first3=F.E. | year=2010 | title=Mitochondrial genome sequences and the phylogeny of cranes (Gruiformes: Gruidae) | journal=Auk | volume=127 | issue=2 | pages=440–452 | doi=10.1525/auk.2009.09045 | s2cid=85412892 | url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/277486138 | doi-access=free }}</ref> In the resulting rearrangement to create [[monophyletic]] genera, four species, including the brolga, were placed in the resurrected genus ''[[Antigone (bird)|Antigone]]'' that had originally been erected by German naturalist [[Ludwig Reichenbach]] in 1853<ref name=ioc>{{cite web| editor1-last=Gill | editor1-first=Frank | editor1-link=Frank Gill (ornithologist) | editor2-last=Donsker | editor2-first=David | year=2019 | title=Flufftails, finfoots, rails, trumpeters, cranes, limpkin | work=World Bird List Version 9.2 | url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/bow/flufftails/ | publisher=International Ornithologists' Union | access-date=26 June 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{ cite book | last=Reichenbach | first=Ludwig | author-link=Ludwig Reichenbach | year=1853 | title=Handbuch der speciellen Ornithologie | volume=1 | publisher=Friedrich Hofmeister | place=Leipzig | page=xxiii | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/47618653 }}</ref>

Two [[subspecies]] were suspected to exist: ''A. r. argentea'' found in [[Western Australia]], the [[Northern Territory]] and western [[Queensland]] and ''A. r. rubicunda'', occurring in [[New Guinea]], [[Queensland]], [[New South Wales]], [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]], and [[South Australia]].<ref name="Johnsgard" /> However, mitochondrial analyses have shown both populations sharing haplotypes indicating that they are a single taxon, though microsatellite markers show limited gene flow between the two populations.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Miller|first1=Adam|last2=Veltheim|first2=Inka|last3=Nevard|first3=Timothy|last4=Ming Gan|first4=Han|last5=Haase|first5=Martin|date=2019|title=Microsatellite loci and the complete mitochondrial DNA sequence characterised through next-generation sequencing and de novo genome assembly, and a preliminary assessment of population genetic structure for the Australian crane, Antigone rubicunda|journal=Avian Biology Research|volume=12|issue=2|pages=49–58|doi=10.1177/1758155919832142|s2cid=92581541 }}</ref>

==Description==
The brolga is a tall bird with a large beak, a long and slender neck, and stilt-like legs. The sexes are indistinguishable in appearance, though females are usually a little smaller.{{sfn|Marchant|Higgins|1993|p=470}} The adult has a grey-green, skin-covered crown, and the face, cheeks, and throat pouch are also featherless and are coral red. Other parts of the head are olive green and clothed in dark bristles. The gular pouch, which is particularly pendulous in adult males, is covered with such dense bristles as to make it appear black. The beak is greyish-green in adult birds, long and slender, and the [[Iris (anatomy)|iris]]es are yellowish-orange. The ear [[covert]]s appear as a grey patch of small feathers surrounded by red naked skin and the body plumage is silvery-grey. The feathers on the back and the wing coverts have pale margins. The primary wing feathers are black and the secondaries grey. The legs and feet are greyish-black. Juveniles lack the red band and have fully feathered heads with dark irises. A fully grown brolga can reach a height of {{convert|0.7|to|1.4|m|ftin|0|abbr=on}} and has a wingspan of {{convert|1.7|to|2.4|m|ftin|0|abbr=on}}. Adult males have an average body mass of {{convert|6.8|kg|abbr=on}} with females averaging {{convert|5.66|kg|abbr=on}}. The weight can range from {{convert|3.6|to|8.7|kg|abbr=on}}.<ref name=Gould/><ref name=Johnsgard>{{cite journal |title=Cranes of the World: Australian Crane (Grus rubicundus) |journal=Cranes of the World |last=Johnsgard |first=Paul |author-link=Paul Johnsgard |year=1983 |pages = 140–148 |url=http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/bioscicranes/2/ }}</ref><ref name= CRC>{{cite book |title=''CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses'' |edition=2nd |editor-first=John B. Jr. |editor-last=Dunning |publisher=CRC Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-4200-6444-5}}</ref><ref>Wilson, D., & Organ, A. (2015). ''The Use of Aerial Surveys for the Detection of the Brolga Grus rubicunda Through South-West Victoria: Key Considerations for the Wind Industry''. In Wind and Wildlife (pp. 59-68). Springer, Dordrecht.</ref> Heights up to {{convert|1.8|m|ftin|0|abbr=on}} in male brolga have been reported but presumably need confirmation.<ref>Miller, A. (2016). ''The development of microsatellite loci through next generation sequencing, and a preliminary assessment of population genetic structure for the iconic Australian crane, Brolga (Antigone rubicunda)''. Nature Glenelg Trust, Warrnambool, Victoria.</ref> The brolga is the heaviest flying bird regularly found in mainland Australia, averaging slightly higher in body mass than other large resident species such as [[black swan]], [[Australian pelican]] and the Australian race of [[sarus crane]] (Asian sarus cranes are heavier and significantly taller). Brolgas are as well as much heavier on average than the biggest flying land birds such as the very sexually-dimorphic [[Australian bustard]] and [[wedge-tailed eagle]]), although heavier birds such as [[wandering albatross]] may be seen as marine vagrants off the mainland.<ref name= CRC/> Brolgas probably rival black-necked storks and sarus cranes as the tallest flying birds in Australia.<ref name=Gould/><ref name=Johnsgard/>

The brolga can easily be confused with the [[sarus crane]], but the latter's red head-colouring extends partly down the neck, while the brolga's is confined to the head. The brolga is more silvery-grey in colour than the sarus, the legs are blackish rather than pink, and the trumpeting and grating calls it makes are at a lower pitch. Additionally, in Australia, sarus crane distribution is limited to north-eastern areas, compared to the more widespread distribution of the brolga.<ref name=Johnsgard/>

[[File:Head and neck-Brogla.jpg|thumb]]

==Distribution and habitat==
[[File:Brolga head.jpg|thumb|right|Close up of the head]]

Brolgas are widespread and often abundant in north and north-east Australia, especially north-east Queensland, and are common as far south as Victoria. They are also found in southern New Guinea and as rare vagrants in [[New Zealand]] and the northern part of Western Australia. The population in northern Australia is estimated at between 20,000 and 100,000 birds and in southern Australia, 1,000 birds. The number of individuals in New Guinea is unknown.<ref name=USGS/> Until 1961, brolgas were thought to be the only species of crane in Australia, until the sarus crane was also located in Queensland.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Gill|first=H.B.|date=1969|title=First record of the Sarus Crane in Queensland|journal=The Emu|volume=69|pages=49–52|doi=10.1071/MU969047d}}</ref>

Brolga movements in Australia are poorly understood, though seasonal flocks are observed in eastern Queensland in nonbreeding areas regularly, and a few coastal populations are suspected to move up to {{convert|500|km|abbr=on}} inland.<ref name=USGS>{{cite web |url=https://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/birds/cranes/grusrubi.htm |title=The Cranes: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan |work=Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan |publisher=Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center |access-date=2013-03-08}}</ref> Little is known of the movements and habitats of the New Guinea populations.<ref name=USGS/>

Further south, in Victoria and New South Wales, rainfall is spread more evenly throughout the year and the driest season lasts from December to May. At this time, southern populations congregate in inland flocking areas, which include upland marshes, the edges of [[reservoir]]s and [[lake]]s, pastures, and agricultural land. When rain arrives in June and July, they disperse to the coastal freshwater marshes, shallow lakes, wet meadows, and other wetlands where they breed.<ref name=USGS/> In south-west Victoria, breeding sites during and immediately after spring are freshwater wetlands, while freshwater, brackish and saline wetland sites are used for flocking during the autumn.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Sheldon|first=Rebecca A.|date=2005|title=Breeding and flocking: comparison of seasonal wetland habitat use by the Brolga Grus rubicunda in south-western Victoria|url=http://www.birdlife.org.au/afo/index.php/afo/article/view/40|journal=Australian Field Ornithology|volume=22|pages=5–11}}</ref>

Queensland has the greatest numbers of brolgas, and sometimes flocks of over 1,000 individuals are seen.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wiresnr.org/Brolga-2.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100729094626/http://www.wiresnr.org/Brolga-2.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=July 29, 2010 |title=Brolga| author=Davis, Danielle |work=WIRES: Northern Rivers |date=2014-01-19 |access-date=2014-01-19}}</ref> The bird is the official bird emblem for the state and also appears on its coat of arms.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.about-australia.com/facts/queensland-flags-emblems/ |title=Queensland flags and emblems |work=About Australia |access-date=2013-03-11}}</ref> Breeding pairs and flocks are distributed across several floodplains along the Gulf of Carpentaria.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last1=Sundar|first1=K.S. Gopi|last2=Grant|first2=John D.A.|last3=Veltheim|first3=Inka|last4=Kittur|first4=Swati|last5=Brandis|first5=Kate|last6=McCarthy|first6=Michael A.|last7=Scambler|first7=Elinor|title=Sympatric cranes in northern Australia: abundance, breeding success, habitat preference and diet|journal=Emu |volume=119|pages=79–89|doi=10.1080/01584197.2018.1537673|year=2019|issue=1 |bibcode=2019EmuAO.119...79S |s2cid=133977233 |hdl=1959.4/unsworks_52806|hdl-access=free}}</ref> Brolgas here preferentially use two grassland-dominated regional ecosystems (2.3.1 and 2.3.4), though over 30% of the cranes share four additional ''Eucalyptus''-dominated woodland regional ecosystems with sarus cranes. Brolga numbers were highest in floodplains where grassland habitats dominated, and the largest flocks were also found in grassland habitats.<ref name=":0" />

==Ecology and behaviour==
[[File:Brolga2.jpg|thumb|right|A pair of brolgas amongst other [[waterbird]]s in the [[Northern Territory]]]]
The social unit of brolgas is very similar to that observed in sarus cranes. In breeding areas, breeding pairs defend territories against other brolgas, and when breeding efforts are successful, they remain in territories with one or two chicks.<ref name=":0" /> Nonbreeding birds, being young birds of past years as well as adults that do not yet have breeding territories, are also found in breeding areas, likely throughout the year. In the nonbreeding season, they gather into large flocks, which appear to be many self-contained individual groups rather than a single social unit. Within the flock, families sometimes remain separate and coordinate their activities with one another rather than with the flock as a whole.<ref name=Johnsgard/> In south-western Queensland, 26–40% of all crane sightings were breeding pairs and families in the Gilbert and Flinders river floodplains.<ref name=":0" /> Flocks were relatively rarer, but birds in flocks in the Flinders river floodplain constituted 80% of all brolgas counted. In south-west Victoria,  distinct breeding (spring) and flocking (autumn) seasons are noted.<ref name=":1" />
 	
When taking off from the ground, their flight is ungainly, with much flapping of wings. The bird's black wingtips are visible while it is in the air, and once it gathers speed, its flight is much more graceful and it often ascends to great heights. Here, it may be barely discernible as it wheels in great circles, sometimes emitting its hoarse cry.<ref name=Gould/>

===Diet===
Brolgas are [[Omnivore|omnivorous]] and forage in wetlands, saltwater marshes, and farmlands. They tear up the ground with their powerful beaks in search of bulbs and edible roots.<ref name=Gould/> Northern populations have a very varied diet, with minimal contribution of vegetation.<ref name=":0" /> They also eat the shoots and leaves of wetland and upland plants, cereal grains, [[seed]]s, [[insects]], [[mollusk]]s, [[crustacean]]s, [[frog]]s, and [[lizard]]s. In saltwater marshes, they may drink saline water, as they have [[gland]]s near their eyes through which they [[salt gland|can excrete excess salt]].<ref name=Veyret/> Isotopic analyses of molted feathers in their breeding grounds along the Gulf of Carpentaria showed their diet to be diverse across multiple trophic levels, with minimal contribution of vegetation.<ref name=":0" /> Analyses showed strong niche separation between brolgas and sarus cranes by diet. Their diet in dry season flocks at Atherton Highlands likely are very different owing to the largely agricultural landscape.

===Mating and breeding===

[[File:Brolgas Healesville.jpg|thumb|upright|right|Pair at nest at [[Healesville Sanctuary]] near Melbourne]]
	
Brolgas are [[Monogamy in animals|monogamous]] and usually bond for life, though new pairings may follow the death of one individual. A feature of a bonded couple is the synchronous calling, which the female usually initiates. She stands with her wings folded and beak pointed to the sky and emits a series of trumpeting calls. The male stands alongside in a similar posture, but with his wings flared and primaries drooping, which is the only time when sex can be differentiated reliably. The male emits one longer call for every two emitted by the female.<ref name=Veyret/>

Brolgas are well known for their ritualised, intricate [[mating dance]]s. The performance begins with a bird picking up some grass and tossing it into the air before catching it in its bill. The bird then jumps a metre (yard) into the air with outstretched wings and continues by stretching its neck, bowing, strutting around, calling, and bobbing its head up and down. Sometimes, just one brolga dances for its mate; often they dance in pairs; and sometimes a whole group of about a dozen dance together, lining up roughly opposite each other before they start.<ref name=Johnsgard/>
[[File:Grus rubiconda MHNT 226.jpg|upright|thumb|Egg of ''A. rubicunda'']]
The brolga breeds throughout its range in Australia and New Guinea. The start of the breeding season is largely determined by rainfall rather than the time of year; thus, the season is February to May after the rainy season in the monsoonal areas, and September to December in southern Australia.<ref name=Ber03/> It is unclear whether all breeding pairs leave breeding territories to join flocks during the dry season or return the subsequent breeding season, and this behavior may vary with location. In food-rich [[habitat (ecology)|habitats]], nests can be quite close together, and in Queensland, are found in the same area as those of the sarus crane. The nest, which is built by both sexes, is a raised mound of uprooted grass, and other plant material sited on a small island in shallow water, or occasionally floating. Sometimes, the birds make hardly any nest, take over a disused [[swan]] nest, or simply lay on bare ground.<ref name=Ber03>{{cite book | last = Beruldsen | first = G | title = Australian Birds: Their Nests and Eggs | publisher = self | year = 2003 | location = Kenmore Hills, Queensland | page = 211 | isbn= 978-0-646-42798-0}}</ref> Nests were initiated between November and February in the Gilbert and Flinders River basins, and tracked rainfall episodes in each river basin.<ref name=":0" />

A single brood is produced per year. The clutch size is usually two, but occasionally one or three eggs<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal|last=Nielson|first=Lloyd|date=1963|title=Unusual clutch of eggs of the Brolga|journal=The Australian Bird Watcher|volume=2|pages=56–57}}</ref> are laid about two days apart. The dull white eggs are sparsely spotted or blotched with reddish brown, with the markings being denser at the larger end of the egg. They measure {{convert|95|by|61|mm|abbr=on}}, though larger eggs were found in a clutch of three eggs.<ref name=Ber03/><ref name=":2" /> Both sexes incubate the eggs, with the female sitting on the nest at night. Hatching is not synchronised, and occurs after about 32 days of incubation. The newly hatched chicks are covered with grey down and weigh about {{convert|100|g|abbr=on}}. They are [[precocial]] and are able to leave the nest within a day or two. Both parents feed and guard the young. The chicks fledge within 4–5 weeks, are fully feathered within 3 months, and are able to fly about 2 weeks later. When threatened, they hide and stay quiet, while the parents perform a broken-wing display to distract the predator. The adults continue to protect the young for up to 11 months, or for nearly 2 years if they do not breed again in the interim.<ref name=Johnsgard/> Breeding pairs maintain discrete territories within which they raise chicks. Territory sizes in Victoria, south-eastern Australia, ranged between 70 and 523 hectares, and each crane territory had a mix of farmland and wetlands.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal|last1=Veltheim|first1=Inka|last2=Cook|first2=Simon|last3=Palmer|first3=Grant|last4=Hill|first4=Richard|last5=McCarthy|first5=Michael|date=2019|title=Breeding home range movements of pre-fledged brolga chicks, Antigone rubicunda (Gruidae) in Victoria, Australia – Implications for wind farm planning and conservation|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S235198941930037X|journal=Global Ecology and Conservation|volume=e00703|article-number=e00703 |doi=10.1016/j.gecco.2019.e00703 |bibcode=2019GEcoC..2000703V |doi-access=free}}</ref> Families roosted in wetlands at night, and moved an average distance of 442 m to and from these night roosts. Each family used multiple wetlands within their territories, either switching between them, or using wetlands sequentially. Breeding success of territorial pairs (estimated as percentage of pairs that successfully fledged at least one chick) was 59% in the Gilbert River basin and 46% in the Flinders River basin (using a total of 80 pairs located on territories), with 33% of all successful pairs fledging two chicks each.<ref name=":0" />

==Conservation status==
[[File:Brolgas on corn stubble.jpg|thumb|Brolgas on a corn field]] 
The [[IUCN Red List of Threatened Species]] lists the brolga as being of "[[least concern]]" because it has a large range and a population of more than 10,000 individuals. Although the population may be declining slowly, this is not at a rate that would warrant the brolga being included in a more vulnerable category.<ref name=IUCN/> Brolgas are not listed as threatened on the Australian [[Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999]]. However, their conservation status varies from state to state within Australia. For example, the brolga is listed as threatened under the Victorian [[Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (1988)]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dse.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/103389/Advisory_List_of_Threatened_Vert_Fauna_in_Victoria_-_2007_amended_11_august_2009.pdf |title=Department of Sustainability and Environment Threatened Species Advisory Lists |publisher=Department of Sustainability and Environment |access-date=2013-03-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130105001641/http://www.dse.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/103389/Advisory_List_of_Threatened_Vert_Fauna_in_Victoria_-_2007_amended_11_august_2009.pdf |archive-date=2013-01-05 }}</ref> Under this Act, an Action Statement for the recovery and future management of this species has been prepared. It is also included in the 2007 advisory list of threatened vertebrate fauna in Victoria where it is listed as [[Vulnerable species|vulnerable]].<ref name="DSE200">{{cite book | author = Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment | title = Advisory List of Threatened Vertebrate Fauna in Victoria – 2007 | publisher = Department of Sustainability and Environment | year = 2007 | location = East Melbourne, Victoria | page = 15 | isbn = 978-1-74208-039-0 }}</ref>

The suspected chief threats faced by the brolga, particularly in the southern part of its range, are [[habitat destruction]] particularly spread of blue gum (''Eucalyptus globulus'') into breeding habitats, the drainage of wetlands, collision with powerlines, burning and grazing regimes, spread of invasive species, and harvesting of eggs.<ref name=":4" /> It is more secure in the north-eastern part of its distribution range as the floodplains of Queensland are mostly unsuitable for farming and much of it is in private ownership, but development activities that change or reduce habitat diversity, especially in the Gulf Plains, can have unknown impacts on their populations.<ref name=":0" /> Wind farms are an emerging threat, and research on movement and habitat use by breeding pairs and chicks show the importance of locating turbines away from wetlands important for night roosting.<ref name=":3" />

Conservation measures being undertaken include international cooperation, legal protection, research, monitoring, habitat management, education, and the maintenance of captive flocks for propagation and reintroduction.<ref name=USGS/> Although the bird breeds well in the wild,  breeding it in captivity has proved to be much more problematic.<ref name=Veyret/>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

===Cited text===
*{{cite book | year=1993 |chapter=''Grus rubicundus'' Brolga |editor1-last=Marchant |editor1-first=S. |editor2-last=Higgins |editor2-first=P.G. |title=Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds. Volume 2: Raptors to lapwings | place=Melbourne, Victoria |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-553069-8 |pages=470–80 |chapter-url=http://www.nzbirdsonline.org.nz/sites/all/files/167_Unidentified%20Crane.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150126062424/http://nzbirdsonline.org.nz/sites/all/files/167_Unidentified%20Crane.pdf |archive-date=2015-01-26 |url-status=live }}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Grus rubicunda}}
{{Wiktionary-inline|brolga}}

{{Gruidae|state=all}} 
{{Portal bar|Birds}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q926178}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Antigone (genus)]]
[[Category:Birds of Australia]]
[[Category:Birds of southern New Guinea]]
[[Category:Birds of Queensland]]
[[Category:Birds described in 1810]]
[[Category:Symbols of Queensland]]