This beautiful bird was once abundant across eastern Eurasia and Asia, but loss of its woodland and wetland habitats, along with overhunting, drove the species to the brink of extinction. By 1981, the remaining wild population was down to just seven birds in one forested area of Shaanxi province in central China. Current estimates put the population at around 500 in China, and efforts are under way to reintroduce a captive-bred population to the wild in Japan.
This beautiful bird was once abundant across eastern Eurasia and Asia, but loss of its woodland and wetland habitats, along with overhunting, drove the species to the brink of extinction. By 1981, the remaining wild population was down to just seven birds in one forested area of Shaanxi province in central China. Current estimates put the population at around 500 in China, and efforts are under way to reintroduce a captive-bred population to the wild in Japan.