African bird mysteriously turns up in Inland Empire

A bird native to a African wetlands habitat has mysteriously turned up in inland Southern California.

The Inland Valley Daily Bulletin says the East African crowned crane, also known as a grey crowned crane, has been spotted in a flood-control and groundwater recharge area in Rancho Cucamonga.

The bird has a tag on one leg.

Steve Duncan of the San Dimas-based Avicultural Society of America viewed the bird Thursday and said it appears healthy but lonely, making repeated honking calls to contact its own kind.

Duncan says such cranes are well-established in captivity but are not common, mostly found in zoos or large private collections. He says he first heard of a sighting in the region about six months ago but wrote it off to misidentification.