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Sarus crane, is the tallest flying bird in the world standing 152-156 cm tall with a wingspan of 240cm. It has a predominantly grey plumage with a naked red head and upper neck and pale red legs. Females are smaller, growing to about 35-40kg, while the males grow bigger, up to 40-45kg. It is a social creature, found mostly in pairs or small groups of three or four.

Known to mate for life with a single partner, its breeding season coincides with heavy rainfall in monsoon. Nests are constructed on water in natural wetlands or in flooded paddy fields. Usually a clutch has only one or two eggs, which are incubated by both parents for a period of 26 to 35 days. The juveniles follow their parents from the day of birth. The sarus crane is the tallest flying bird belonging to the crane family, Gruidae. The sarus crane is non-migratory and is adapted to human presence, especially in India. It is distributed in Indian subcontinent, Mainland Southeast Asia and Australia.

The overall plumage is gray, the primaries being blackish and secondaries being mostly gray. The mid-neck and tertials are whiter. The head and upper neck have bare reddish skin. The crown region is grayish. The bill is long, pointed and greenish gray. The long legs of the crane are pinkish red. The red skin on the head and upper neck and the reddish legs turn very bright red during the breeding season. The tips of the wings are dark gray. In flight the neck is held straight and the long legs trail behind. Their call is a high-pitched trumpeting sound.