AHMEDABAD: Experts and conservationists believe that a project on the lines of Project Tiger has to be launched in order to save the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) that is threatened with extinction.

JAIPUR: On the eve of the state budget presentation, wildlife activists have pinned their hopes on chief minister Ashok Gehlot to announce some steps towards wildlife conservation.

Some are hoping that the long neglected state bird, the Great Indian Bustard (GIB), will finally get its share in the budget. Rajasthan was once home to 50% of the bird population which has now come down to just about 100.

Mining Destroys Habitat; 78 Spotted In 1992

Ajmer: Owing to massive mining in the Sokhliya grassland of Nasirabad block of Ajmer, only two Great Indian Bustards were spotted in the survey which ended on Monday night. In 1990s, more than 75 bustards were spotted here. The department is preparing to restore the habitat of these birds after which it will conduct the second phase of the survey in June. Around 35 teams of forest department were out in the region all long day to spot the state bird (GIB). “Sokhaliya is the natural habitat of this bird but in the last ten years their numbers have drastically dropped in the area,” said the sarpanch of Deratu village.

JAIPUR: The hunting of Houbara bustards through falconry in Pakistani areas close to the Indian border is a violation of international bird conservation legislation. Though Houbara is not endangered but it is considered vulnerable according to International Union for Conservation of Nature, IUCN. These birds are hunted by members of Arab royal families with permission from the government of Pakistan.

A Jaipur-based environmental group, Tourism and Wildlife Society of India (TWSI), has now sought the intervention of Union external affairs ministry to put pressure on Pakistan to ban hunting of rare Houbara bustards, which has drastically reduced India's share of its annual winter migrants and affected the desert eco-system.

A recent incident of alleged poaching of a Great Indian Bustard -- the State bird of Rajasthan listed in the “critically endangered” category -- near the famous Sam sand dunes in Jaisalmer district has shocked environmentalists who have blamed poor wildlife management and lack of protective measures for the crime.

Some hunters travelling in two vehicles allegedly shot dead a Great Indian Bustard in broad daylight in Sudasari area forming part of the Desert National Park on December 20 and took away the dead bird. A shepherd saw the act and complained to the forest authorities.

Great Indian Bustard, long-billed vulture spotted in a month’s span

Bellary is turning out to be an ornithologists’ dream destination. Great Indian Bustards (GIBs) were sighted a few days ago at Chelugurki village, 20 km from Bellary and 60 km from Siruguppa. Long-billed vultures had been spotted last month. Dwindling numbers of GIBs is a matter of concern across the country and their sightings have become a rarity.

Some 402 new species facing extinction have been added to the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), says a report released on Wednesday at COP 11, the biodiversity conference being held in Hyderabad. India ranked seven in struggling to protect the species on the list.

Air-breathing snails known as Little Flat Top, found in Alabama (US), and the island-dwelling cockroach (Seychelles) have recently moved into the extinct list.
The report revealed that 83 per cent of Madagascar’s palms are threatened with extinction, putting the livelihoods of local people at risk. The Suicide Palm, which grows up to 60 feet and dies a few months after flowering and producing seeds, is among them.

Villages in Ajmer district agree to conserve grounds for Great Indian Bustard and Lesser Florican

Endangered birds, the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) and Lesser Florican, are back in their annual breeding lands in Rajasthan’s Shonkaliya region in Ajmer district. Though the population of GIB, Rajasthan’s State Bird, cannot be termed sizeable the Lesser Floricans are in greater numbers this time with the males among them displaying their plumes jumping up in the air to attract the females in the middle of the breeding season with copious rains in the area coming as an extra incentive.