Wildlife Institute of India recommends formation of network for better conservation of Amur falcons in Northeast

Our Correspondent

Imphal, Nov. 17 (EMN): The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) has recommended on formation of a network involving local communities, forest department personnel, administrators and media representing each of the stop-over sites across the Northeast Indian region for better conservation initiatives of Amur Falcon (Falco amurensis),the world’s longest flying migratory birds.

A report of WII, Dehradun said, “It is recommended that a network involving local communities, forest department personnel, the church, administrators, media personnel representing each of the stop-over sites across the Northeast Indian region be formed”.

“And, the network through consultations works together in planning, strategizing and adopting measures that better benefit Amur Falcon conservation in the region.”

The WII report highlighting the new findings during the satellite tracking of Amur falcon from its stop-over sites in Manipur to support conservation efforts, was released during the 7th Amur Falcon festival at Tamenglong district headquarters, 150 km west of Manipur state capital on Nov. 14.

 “During the study, eight Amur Falcons were satellite tagged to document their migration, their breeding and non-breeding grounds, stop-over sites and migration strategies,” the report said.

The Amur Falcon tagging in Manipur was undertaken in two phases, first in 2018 and then in 2019 and was scheduled for the first week of November when congregation of falcons is at its peak.

While some of the birds could not be tracked, some were successfully tracked for the longest duration of 827 days along with another which was tracked for three trips to the non-breeding grounds and two to the breeding grounds, as per the report.

Interestingly, the tagged Amur Falcons on their migration, either passed through the territory or stopped over in 21 countries which included, India,China, Mongolia, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Oman, Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa.

Meanwhile, Dr. Suresh Kumar of WII who had tagged five falcons in Manipur, when sought his comment said, “The landmark finding in the satellite tagging is that it has helped understand where all Amur Falcons stopover in Manipur and across Northeast India and why stopover in Manipur, which is driven by food availability and not just rest during their migration”.

It is the availability of super abundant termite food during this time of the year that is driving these large congregations there.

This study has helped the department in their preparedness to create awareness and ensure safe passage. This study has definitely helped scale up conservation efforts not only for Amur Falcons but also to other species in these remote hill areas of Manipur and thereby highlighting the significance of conservation of the unique biodiversity, Dr Suresh added.

Along with this, administrative orders banning hunting, media campaign, conservation awareness through the support of the church, and community ownership were also key factors in halting the large-scale harvest of Amur Falcons in the region.

Amur Falcon is a long distance, trans-equatorial migrant. It has one of the longest and most arduous migration routes of any bird, travelling up to 22,000 km in a year, from eastern Asia all the way to Southern Africa and back. They undertake the longest regular overwater passage of any bird of prey, crossing over the Indian Ocean between Western India and tropical East Africa, a journey of more than 4,000 km, which also includes nocturnal flight.