Bustard Recovery Program
- Coverage of species: Great Indian Bustard (GIB) and Lesser Florican.
- There are four bustard species present in India, other two are Bengal Florican; Macqueen’s Bustard.
- Background: Plans to recover the species first started in 2013 under the National Bustard Recovery Plan, which later gave way to the Bustard Recovery Project in 2016.
- The Bustard Recovery Project commenced for an initial period of five years (2016-21) and now extended till 2033.
- Current Status: As of now, around 140 GIBs and fewer than 1,000 Lesser Floricans are surviving in the wild.
- Project implemented by: Wildlife Institute of India
- Funding agency: National Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) Authority
- Partner agencies: Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change Rajasthan Forest Department Gujarat & Maharashtra Forest Departments.
About Great Indian Bustard (GIB)
- Conservation Status
- Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I and IV
- IUCN: Critically Endangered
- CITES: Appendix I
- Key Characteristics
-
- Habitat: Agro-grassland bird endemic to the Indian Subcontinent.
- In India, their population is confined mostly to Rajasthan and Gujarat. Small population occur in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
- Food Habit: Omnivorous bird, they feed on grass seeds, insects like grasshoppers and beetles, and sometimes even small rodents and reptiles.
- Others
-
- GIB lacks frontal vision
- Breed mostly during the monsoon season when females lay a single egg on open ground.
- Importance of GIBs: Considered as indicators of the health of grasslands or pulse of grassland ecosystem.