![]() ![]() ![]() He said veterinary experts coming from Zoological Society of London and Natural History Society had a unique experience in treating the injured birds. After sensing the gravity of the situation, its annual campaign, “Help the Birds” was launched in 2003. “Reports are still coming in of injured birds hanging up-side down from tree branches entangled in kite strings,” Mukherjee added.ĪHF has received more than 6000 birds since it began operations in 2001. However, injuries this year were so critical that 27% (over 170 birds) had to be euthanized. We are hopeful that 50 per cent of these will be able to fly again,” he added. “This is like a war like situation for us with one bird landing every five minutes. White-Rumped vulture ( Gyps bengalensis), Indian vulture ( Gyps indicus) and Slender-billed vulture ( Gyps tenuirostris) are three species which have been affected, listed by IUCN as critically endangered.Ī total of 189 vultures died between 2002-2006 and this year 10 vultures were rescued by AHF.Īccording to a vulture census by Kartik Shastri of Bird Conservation Society, only 137 birds were reported in Ahmedabad in 2006. Some of these birds are critically endangered criteria. Vultures, Kites, pigeons, dove, eagles, crows, sarus cranes and parakeets were among those injured by kite flying. ![]() International Kite Festival was also held on 11 January where 70 Indian and 74 international kite flyers from 21 countries participated at Sabramati river front, Ahmedabad. Last year kite flyers had used cotton thread where the injuries were less severe.Įvery year, this event starts from mid December and reaches its peak with the religious festival of “Makar Sankranti” on January 14 in many parts of north and western India. “The use of razor-sharp Chinese nylon thread and string coated with powdered glass led to whole wings of birds being cut off,” he said. Mukherjee is also a member of the IFAW Emergency Relief Network, run by its Indian partner, Wildlife Trust of India(WTI). Soham Mukherjee of the Animal Help Foundation (AHF) said. This year 639 severely wounded birds were rescued, up from 571 last year. In other words, the NZP area has witnessed an impressive recovery.įunded by the Raptor Research & Conservation Foundation (Mumbai), the research began last year and the final report of the initial survey was recently released by WII.Ahmedabad: Hundreds of birds die every year, including some rare species during the January kite-flying season in western Gujarat state making it one of the biggest man-made disasters in India. The recent WII report places the density in NZP at 87–118 nests per sq km. Malhotra conducted a study of National Zoological Park (NZP) and reported the black kite’s ‘nesting density’ as 25 nests per sq km by 2004-07 this had come down to five per sq km. The current density of this area has more or less remained stable. ![]() The number of black kites was estimated around 2,500, while analysing the 360-degree aerial panoramic shot at the hour of highest congregation.Īccording to the 1971 study by Galushin, the ‘nesting density’ of black kites at the North Campus of Delhi University varied between 50-80 pairs per sq km. To count the number of black kites in that locality, WII researchers developed the method of photograph-based count using software Image J. Ghazipur in Delhi remains a hot spot for black kites, with abundance of food in the dumping yard, a large number of slaughter houses, and chicken/fish markets located there. Galushin had conducted a similar study across 150 sq km and assessed the black kite’s ‘nesting density’ at 16.1 pairs per sq km. And for the past five decades, Delhi has been maintaining a stable breeding population of this bird, commonly known as ‘cheel’.ĭespite urbanisation and loss of green cover, Delhi’s black kite population has remained intact.Īccording to the report by the Dehradun-based institute, the bird’s ‘nesting density’ in Delhi is 15 pairs per sq km, which is almost the same as the figures for 1970s. Known scavengers, black kites consume about 100g of food daily and help dispose of wasteĪ recent study by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) has brought a piece of good news for bird lovers in Delhi.Īmong the major cities of the world, the national Capital has the highest density of black kites (Milvus migrans govinda). ![]()
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