2019 – Posted in: Daily News

GREAT INDIAN BUSTARD AND LESSER FLORICAN – ENDANGERED BIRDS

The apex court has constituted a committee to urgently frame and implement an emergency response plan for the protection of these species.

Over the last 50 years, the population of the Great Indian Bustard has recorded a decline of over 82 percent.
The population of the Lesser Florican has seen a sharp decline of 80 percent over the past few decades.

Scientific name: Ardeotis nigriceps
Found on the Indian subcontinent.
The species is critically endangered by hunting and loss of its habitat.
It is protected under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 of India.
Listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List
Listed in Appendix I of CITES
The bird was historically found in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu.
Today the bustard is restricted to isolated pockets in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
The great Indian bustard is omnivorous.

Scientific name: Sypheotides indicus
Also known as the likh or kharmore.
The two species of smaller bustards have been called “floricans”.
Smallest in bustard family.
It is endemic to the Indian Subcontinent where it is found in tall grasslands.
Best known for the leaping breeding displays made by the males during the Monsoon season.
The species is highly endangered.
Historic records exist from the Makran coast of Balochistan province in Pakistan.
It breeds mainly in the central and western parts of India.
Lesser floricans feed on a wide variety of small vertebrates and invertebrates.

Lesser Florican

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