Untitled - ENVIS Centre on Avian Ecology

place during the 1990s leading to a sense of unease about
the status of the species in India 7,8 .
Main threats: In Asia, as with many other large
waterbirds, the species is primarily threatened by a
combination of habitat loss and modification (owing
primarily to agricultural expansion), pollution and
persecution, and it has been extirpated from large
proportions of its historical range and hugely reduced in
numbers in the areas which it still occupies. During the
1999 Sarus Crane census throughout India, the major
threat listed by participants was the spread of agriculture
to the shores of wetlands 5 . Habitat availability is also
reduced by mud removal activities, vegetation clearing,
vegetation overgrowth and reclamation 5 .
Conservation measures: The species is listed on Appendix
II of CITES. It receives full legal protection in all range
countries (although appearing only on Schedule IV of the
Indian Wildlife Act 1972). Of the 10 Asian countries where
it is found, eight are signatories to the Ramsar Convention
(the exceptions are Laos and Myanmar).
Buceros Vol. 7, No. 1 & 2 (2002)
References: 1. Roberts 1991–1992; 2. Meine and
Archibald 1996; 3. Wells 1999; 4. Sundar et al. in press;
5. Choudhury, B. C. et al. 1999; 6. Gole 1989; 7.
Choudhury, B. C. 1998; 8. Sundar and Choudhury 1999.
Sarus Crane in some of the IBAs
Rajasthan: 1.Keoladeo NP, 2.Ranthambore TR, 3.
Sariska NP, 4. Bund Baretha WLS; Madhya Pradesh:
1. Dihaila Jheel, 2. Kanha NP, 3. Panna NP, 4. National
Chambal WLS, 5. Bandhavgarh NP, Sone Gharial WLS;
Gujarat: 1. Gir NP, 2. Khijadiya WLS, 3. Lala Great
Indian Bustard WLS, 4. Marine NP, 5.Nalsarovar WLS,
6. Thol Lake WLS, 7. Velavadar NP, 8. Rudra Mata Dam;
Uttar Pradesh: 1.Hastinapur WLS, 2. Kishanpur WLS,
3. Lakhbahosi Bird Sanctuary, 4. Patna Bird Sanctuary,
5. Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary, 6. Samastipur Bird
Sanctuary, 7. Sheikha Jheel, 8. Tikra Jheel; Haryana:
1.Bhindawas WLS, 2. Sultanpur WLS; Maharashtra:
1. Tadoba NP, 2. Nawegaon NP; Manipur: 1.Loktak
Lake & Keibul-Lamjao National Park; Assam: 1. Dibru-
Saikhowa NP+ Kobo Chapori+Amarpur Chapori-
Maguri-Motapung Beels; Delhi: Okhla Barrage.
BLACK-NECKED CRANE Grus nigricollis Vulnerable C1
This species has a small, declining population as a result of loss and degradation of
wetlands, changing agricultural practices and increased human activity in its breeding
and wintering grounds. These factors qualify it as Vulnerable.
Distribution: The breeding range of the Black-necked
Crane includes much of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau in
south-central China, with small breeding populations in
Ladakh, and Bhutan. Very small numbers have wintered
in Arunachal Pradesh.
Population: The global population is estimated to be
5,600–6,000 birds 1,2 , including wintering populations of
360 in Bhutan, no more than 10 in Arunachal Pradesh,
small numbers breed in Ladakh 3 , and breeding could
occur in Sikkim 4 . Very small numbers of wintering birds
(perhaps only occasional visitors) have also been reported
from Myanmar and Vietnam. More comprehensive and
coordinated counts in Ladakh in the 1980s and 1990s
have located larger numbers, with a maximum population
estimate of 38 individuals in 1997, including 12 breeding
pairs 3 . It is believed that a recent increase might have
occurred after poaching by military personnel was
controlled in the mid-1980s 3 .
n n n
Main threats: Intensive grazing and pesticide use has
caused degradation of grasslands in the breeding
grounds. A dam planned on the Lhasa river threatens
wintering birds. Fish-farming, peat and firewood
collection and construction of roads have resulted in
increased disturbance and habitat degradation. The
collection of eggs and poaching are problems in parts
of China and India. In the breeding areas of Ladakh,
the high-altitude vegetation is slow-growing and
sensitive to disturbance, and direct and indirect human
interference is having an increasingly detrimental
impact 3 . The constant diminution of undisturbed
foraging and breeding areas is exerting such pressure
on the small Indian population that it is unlikely to
survive without assistance in the form of legal and habitat
protection 3 .
Conservation measures: CITES Appendix I and II.
CMS Appendix I and II. Research conducted in China,
43 THREATENED BIRDS OF INDIA
VULNERABLE