Animals

Exotic Crane’s Owner Comes Forward

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The brief mystery of an African Crowned Crane found wandering in residential Encinitas has been solved.

 The bird’s owner contacted County Animal Services Monday afternoon after seeing media coverage about his missing pet.

The owner, Encinitas resident Hap Hansen, plans to claim the bird Tuesday morning.

Hansen said he was out of town when his 3-year-old pet “Cranium” got over the fence in his backyard sometime Saturday. 

The same day, Jackie Bond, who lives in the 2400 block of Calle San Clemente not far from Hansen’s house returned home from walking her dog and found the striking bird in her driveway.

“It honked at us; I think it didn’t like the dog,” Bond said.

She put her dog inside and then approached the bird, talking quietly and getting within a few feet.

“Basically I just started talking to it real quietly; I quietly opened the garage and quietly herded him in,” Bond said. “He’s quite friendly; he’s obviously been around people.”

Bond watched the approximately 3-foot-high bird in her garage with fascination until County animal control officers arrived.

“I took quite a few pictures and I put a pan of water down; he really wanted to get his feet in it,” Bond said.

Animal control officers responded and took the bird to the County’s shelter in Carlsbad.    

After doing some research, the animal control officers determined that the bird was an African Crowned Crane. 

The Crowned Crane is normally found in the savannas of Africa and is not a migratory bird, so its presence in Encinitas was a short-lived puzzle.

Hansen said he purchased the bird at a Kearny Mesa pet store three years ago. Captive bred and hand-raised, Cranium is a friendly bird who sometimes comes in the house, Hansen said.

There are no federal or state rules against owning the birds, but they require special care.

Media reports on the crane on Monday led Hansen to his missing bird, who was cared for at the County Animal Services shelter in Carlsbad.

“I’m very happy with how it turned out,” he said.