The Eurasian crane (Grus grus), also known as the common crane, is the most widely distributed of all the cranes, breeding from Western Europe to Siberia. It is in the family Gruidae, the cranes found in the northern parts of Europe and Asia. A long-distance migrant wintering in Africa and southern Europe, it prefers forest clearings, bogs, wetlands, fields and meadows with ponds. In migration it stays on open arable land. It has a dancing display, leaping with wings uplifted. Monogamous pairs reinforce their bond with a series of calls and elaborate head jerks. Together the pair build a ground nest within their wetland habitat from a mound of swampy vegetation.