It has the most restricted range of the world's 15 crane species. It is virtually endemic to this country, with the vast majority found in southern and eastern South Africa. Blue Cranes have experienced dramatic declines, with populations in certain areas having crashed by as much as 80 per cent over the past 20 years. This species has been classified as critically endangered under the revised IUCN Red List categories. The Blue Crane occurs in grasslands, the semi-desert Karoo and increasingly in agricultural lands.
Breeding takes place in the summer months, and a clutch of one or two eggs is laid.
In agricultural areas, they often nest in pastures, fallow fields, and in recently harvested crop fields. Once the chicks have grown up, family groups join to form flocks. In some areas, such as the Steenkampsberg, the cranes move out of the higher altitudes in winter. Their diet consists of grass seeds, grains such as wheat, barley and maize, as well as insects.