Cranes — India & Southeast Asia

“The population of the Sarus crane, the tallest flying bird in the world, is surprisingly stable in India and showing increases in some areas, says a researcher. Haryana’s three districts show there are at least 250 birds, while Uttar Pradesh is home to the country’s largest count of 13,000 birds -- much higher than was known before, said K.S. Gopi Sundar, research associate (India) of the US-based International Crane Foundation.”

“The onset of summer has triggered loud trumpeting calls and courtship ritualsof sarus (Grus-antigone), the world’s tallest flying bird, along the wetlands and agricultural landscapes of Mainpuri and Etawah districts. This year, these handsome and tall birds have arrived at Hasel Tal, Sehas and Markandey Bidhnoo in Mainpuri and Sarsai Nawar in Etawah in huge number to take part in ‘swayamvar’ ceremony, much to the delight of bird lovers. ‘The courtship ritual of the sarus birds has begun since past one week. Around 700 birds have been sighted so far in Mainpuri and Etawah districts. Their number will rise in the coming days. At Hasel Tal, around 350 and at Sehas and Markandey Bidhnoo, nearly 200 birds have been sighted so far and the count may increase in the coming days,’ divisional forest officer Sanjiv Kumar said. Large flocks of sarus have also been witnessed in the wetlands and water bodies in neighbouring Etawah district also.’”

“The future of the Indian Sarus Crane is closely tied to the quality of small wetlands in India - which are fast decreasing due to heavy human use... According to experts, factors such as high rates of sewage inflow, extensive agricultural runoff, high levels of pesticide residues, and intensification of agricultural systems.In India, mortality due to collision with electrical wires is a significant threat and cranes have died due to pesticide poisoning. The problem is especially critical in Uttar Pradesh - where almost 30% of the country’s 10,000 strong Sarus Crane population resides. ‘Change is land use, especially the shift to cultivation of sugar cane instead of paddy along with losses in wetland have led to the decline of the species. Indiscriminate use of pesticides, high-tension electric cables and hunting for meat has all caused the bird’s decline in the state,” said a forest department official.”

“KARACHI: The world’s tallest flying bird, the majestic sarus crane is back in Pakistan after more than a decade. A lone pair sighted in Nagarparkar this year is a hope that the rare bird species may become part of Pakistan’s landscape again. But this can happen only if people develop a love for this beautiful and delicate creature and start protecting it... Nagarparkar, [Mr. Ashiq Ahmed Khan, senior wildlife conservationist] said, used to be the breeding ground of sarus cranes which they were forced to leave when one of the birds in a flock were shot down in 1999 and since then there had been no report of the bird’s sighting. ‘We must not lose the species again. They could breed if their habitat is left undisturbed,” he said.”

A study was undertaken between 1999 and 2002 to measure the mortality rate of Sarus Cranes due to electrical wires in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. “Gruiformes, particularly cranes, are at high risk of mortality due to electrical wires... A total of 35 dead and eight injured saurus cranes by wires were recorded... Supply wires caused most of the mortality (97%), while power lines caused most of the injuries (75%).”

“In India, most Sarus Cranes are found scattered throughout private and villagelands, but they do occur in many protected areas, including Keoladeo and Madhav National Parks, the National Chambal Sanctuary, and the Karera BustardSanctuary. At the end of 1994, the ICF signed an agreement with the LumbiniDevelopment Trust in Nepal to lease 120 ha of land at Lumbini, the birthplace ofthe Buddha, to establish the Lumbini Crane Sanctuary and to protect the habitat ofNepal’s remnant population of Sarus Cranes.”

“Through a series of agreements with Vietnamese officials, ICF has assisted research, education, and habitat management programs at the Tram Chim NationalReserve. In 1990, an International Sarus Crane and Wetland Conservation Workshop in Vietnam brought together many of the crane and wetland conservationistswho have worked with the Sarus Crane. In 1992, representatives from Cambodia,Thailand, and ICF prepared and signed a Memorandum of Agreement that outlined plans for Thai and Cambodian researchers to study the breeding grounds inCambodia.”

“Between 1987-88 and 1989-90 eighteen Sarus cranes... were located dead in Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur. The mortality occurred during winter in all three years, and coincided with the application of aldrin in the crop fields surrounding the Park. Aldrin, an organochlorine pesticide, was used to treat soil and seeds such as wheat, mustard, and pea, against termites.... On January 9,1990, a pair [of Sarus Crane] was seen inactive; their behavior looked unusual and the next day the male was found dead in the same place where the pair was located on the previous day. Later, the female remained alone and was not observed feeding for the next four days... On the fifth day it tottered, made a few circles and beat its wings violently with intermittent jumps, and then collapsed.”

Most wetlands in Nepal are entirely uprotected and there is not much habitat forthe sarus crane. “The last significant sarus habitat is a region around Lumbini,a village that has scarcely changed since the birth of the Sakyamuni the Buddha in Lumbini’s gardens more than twenty-five hundred years ago... Lumbini issurrounded by a three-square mile reserve that shelters a number of uncommonspecies... In 1988, a census estimated about one hundred sarus in the Lumbinidistrict, the densest population in Nepal.”

“In the early 1980s, dikes were rebuilt to restore water levels in the Mekong basin, and, in August 1984 twenty-odd cranes miraculously reappeared in the Dong Thap Muoi floodplains—the first authenticated sighting of G. a. sharpii in Southeast Asia since the Vietnam war. With the encouragement of ICF (the International Crane Foundation), local officials set aside a part of Dong Thap Muoi as the Tram Chim (‘Bird Swamp’) Nature Reserve, fifty thousand acres in extent. In 1988, more than a thousand sharpii were counted at Tram Chim, restoring hope for the future of this race...”

“The range of the Sarus Crane has been dramatically reduced by human activity during the past century. Once widely distributed across India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and western Burma, the Indian Sarus Crane is now restricted to portions of northwestern India and the Terai lowlands of Nepal.”

“In 1981 the Keoladeo Ghana Bird Reserve near Bharatpur was made a national park... it became a World Heritage site in 1985. Often referred to as Bharatpur, it is essentially a wetland 7,165 acres in extent, about one third of which is flooded in the time of the monsoon and through the winter; with its astonishing total of 364 bird species, including several that are uncommon and endangered, it is the foremost bird sanctuary on the subcontinent and perhaps on earth.”

Founded by ornithology students, Ron Sauey and George Archibald, the International Crane Foundation works worldwide to conserve cranes and the ecosystems, watersheds, and flyways on which they depend. “From our nearly 300-acre head- quarters in Baraboo, Wisconsin, USA our reach extends across the globe. We maintain a regional base in China and share program offices with partner organizations in Cambodia, India, South Africa, Texas, Vietnam, and Zambia. Our approximately 55 staff work with a network of hundreds of specialists in over 50 countries on five continents . . . The International Crane Foundation is committed to a future where all 15 of the world’s crane species are secure.”