Great Indian Bustard chick hatches from birds reared in captivity | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

Great Indian Bustard chick hatches from birds reared in captivity

ByMukesh Mathrani, Barmer
Apr 02, 2023 12:01 AM IST

The number of Great Indian Bustards has declined to less than 150 in the wild, with close to 90 of them found in just two protected areas.

A chick of a Great Indian Bustard reared in captivity was for the first time hatched on Saturday in Jaisalmer’s breeding centre, which aims to release the critically endangered birds in the wild to stem their declining population.

Great Indian Bustard chick hatches from birds reared in captivity
Great Indian Bustard chick hatches from birds reared in captivity

“This shows that our effort to save the GIBs is moving in the right direction,” said a scientist at the Wildlife Institute of India who has been working on the iconic bids for several years. “Our aim is to do artificial insemination for GIBs to build their gene pool and improve their numbers in the wild.”

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

The number of Great Indian Bustards has declined to less than 150 in the wild, with close to 90 of them found in just two protected areas, the Desert National Park and Ramdevra Army Protected Area. Its population has declined as much as 75% in 30 years, according to the Wildlife Institute. Power transmission lines and windmills in the Thar Desert in Rajasthan and Kutch in Gujarat have contributed to the decline.

The breeding centre had collected 30 eggs from the wild, of which six were damaged, an official said, declining to be named. Twenty-four chicks were successfully hatched from the eggs, but two of them died. “As of now, we have 22 artificially hatched GIBs at the Jaisalmer breeding centre,” the official said.

Two artificially hatched birds had mated in February, and the female laid an egg on March 6, according to Ashish Vyas, divisional forest officer and in-charge of Desert National Park.

On Saturday, the egg was hatched with a healthy chick. “This is for the first- time reproduction has happened and it is an important step to improve the GIB population,” the official said.

The hatching took place after 21 days of incubation, according to Dr Sharwan Singh Rathore, veterinary scientist at the GIB Conservation Breeding project at Sam in Jaisalmer.

The egg was placed in an incubator to keep it warm and under the right humidity levels, Dr Rathore explained. “Many times, the GIBs eggs in the wild are eaten by predators and the initiative of artificial hatching was to get maximum chicks from the eggs, which are a few in a year,” he said.

Chicks from captive birds would help the centre to increase the population of the birds that can then be released in the wild, officials said. “The first generation of GIBs are too attached to humans and have been manually fed. They may not have ability to find food for themselves in wild,” said the first official quoted earlier.

Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav congratulated the concerned officials. “Happy to share that Project Great Indian Bustard has crossed another milestone in Jaisalmer. GIB, a highly endangered bird, also known as Son Chairaiya, has been successfully hatched from artificially reared birds in captivity. Kudos to forest officials and WII for the feat,” he tweeted.

The Great Indian Bustard, the state bird of Rajasthan and also known as Godawan, is listed as critically endangered in the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s list and is granted the highest level of protection under India’s Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

The breeding centre should now focus on new captive breeding initiatives such as artificial insemination and double clutching from almost every female, according to Radheshyam Pemani, a local environmentalist. He asked the government to take measures to protect the GIBs, including removing overhead power cables and putting them underground.

“We lost nine godawan in the past four years due to power lines and their number is precariously low,” Pemani said. “If efforts are not taken, we may lose all godawans in the wild.”

Unveiling Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections. Watch now!

Get Current Updates on India News, Election 2024, Mukhtar Ansari Death News Live, Bihar Board 10th Result 2024 Live along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Friday, March 29, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On