White-naped crane chick on display at Bronx Zoo

NEW YORK (FOX 5 NEWS) - A white-naped crane chick that hatched this spring at the Bronx Zoo is on display with its parents in the zoo's Northern Ponds.

White-naped cranes are native to China, Russia, Japan, North and South Korea, and Mongolia, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society. The population in the wild is estimated to be between 5,500 and 6,500. The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies the species as "Vulnerable."

The white-naped crane is part of a cooperative breeding program among zoos and aquariums.

The Wildlife Conservation Society's mission is to save "wildlife and wild places worldwide through science, conservation action, education, and inspiring people to value nature," according to its website. In addition to the Bronx Zoo, its flagship property, WCS runs the Prospect Park Zoo, the New York Aquarium, the Queens Zoo, and the Central Park Zoo.