Jatayu Conservation Breeding Centre, Pinjore

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Jatayu Conservation and Breeding Centre
Critically Endangered Bird Breeding Centre
Long-billed Vulture.jpg
Indian vulture in flight
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Jatayu Conservation and Breeding Centre
Location in Haryana, India
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Jatayu Conservation and Breeding Centre
Jatayu Conservation and Breeding Centre (India)
Coordinates: 30°46′7″N76°57′19″E / 30.76861°N 76.95528°E / 30.76861; 76.95528 Coordinates: 30°46′7″N76°57′19″E / 30.76861°N 76.95528°E / 30.76861; 76.95528
CountryFlag of India.svg  India
State Haryana
District Panchkula
Founded by Former Chief Minister of Haryana Om Prakash Chautala
Named for Jatayu
Government
 • Type Government of Haryana
 • Body Forests Department, Haryana
Time zone UTC+5:30 (IST)
Website haryanaforest.gov.in

The Jatayu and Sparrow Conservation Breeding Centre (JCBC), is the world's largest facility for the breeding and conservation of Indian vultures and the house sparrow (Passer domesticus). [1] It is located within the Bir Shikargah Wildlife Sanctuary in the town of Pinjore in the State of Haryana, India. [2] [3] [4] It is run by the Haryana Forests Department and Bombay Natural History Society with the help of British nature conservation charity Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. [5] It is 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Pinjore [3] and covers 5 acres (2.0 ha).

Contents

Named after the mythical vulture Jatayu from the Hindu epic Ramayana, [6] it was established in 2001 as Asia's first vulture breeding facility [7] and focuses on the conservation of critically endangered species of vultures on the IUCN Red List. The centre's research confirmed that the use of the anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac in cattle was a critical factor in the decline of vulture populations. [6] The Government of India banned the veterinary use of the drug in 2007–2008 as a result of research done at the centre.

Although the house sparrow is of least concern globally, its numbers in India have been declining, especially in Punjab and Haryana. JCBC is conducting research on the causes of decline to formulate plans to reverse it.

History

Vultures

Fossil records of vultures have been found going as far back as 20 million years ago, from which the Gyps species evolved. This genus represents the majority of the vultures in the Indian subcontinent. [8] [9] [10] They nest on high cliff faces in social groups of typically 20, 30, or even up to 100 vultures, with nests made from wool, skin, dung and refuse. [11] Vultures are scavengers with a high tolerance for the pathogens found in their primary meal of rotting animal carcasses. [12]

Out of the 40 million vultures in India in 1993, [13] 99.9% of slender-billed vultures and 97% white-backed vultures had disappeared from their primary habitat by 2007. This was due to the use of the anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac to treat cattle. [14] [13] The drug is retained in cattle for days. When a vulture feeds on a treated animal that has died, the drug then poisons the vulture. [13] Reduction of vulture numbers has led to an increase in the availability of carrion to other species, resulting in an estimated 7 million more feral dogs who inflicted 40 million more dog bites between 1993 and 2016, causing an estimated 48,000 excess human deaths by rabies and US$34 billion in loss to the economy of India. [13]

The ban on the use of diclofenac in 2007–2008, combined with the success of vulture breeding of the three critically endangered species at JCBC, led to the formation of Saving Asia's Vultures from Extinction (SAVE) in 2011 as a consortium of 14 partner organizations and 14 Indian government agencies, [15] with a goal of restoring at least 40% (16 million) of the vanished white backed, long-billed and slender-billed vultures of South Asia. [14] They plan to achieve this by setting up a total of eight vulture breeding centers (JCBC and seven more) across India, each with a resident vulture population of at least 25 vultures of the three species, [16] allowing the release into the wild of 600 of these vultures across 3,000,000 square km. [15]

Sparrow Rescue and Research Centre

In January 2019, the government of Haryana approved INR5,300,000 to establish, with the help of the Bombay Natural History Society, two Sparrow Rescue and Research Centres, each with 50 pairs of birds collected from various parts of Haryana. These centres were to be located at two sites: Bhondsi Nature Camp in the Aravalli mountain range in south Haryana and Jatayu Conservation and Breeding Centre in the Shivalik mountain range in north Haryana. Though the International Union for Conservation of Nature has classified the sparrow as a species of least concern globally, its numbers have been declining regionally, especially in Punjab and Haryana. Centres will research the causes of decline and formulate action plans to reverse the trend. Centres were expected to become operational in summer 2019.

In 2021, to provide bird habitats in rapidly urbanising areas, the Haryana Wildlife Department distributed 6000 bird nest boxes, 1000 each in six districts of South Haryana. The bird houses were given to panchayats, government offices, non-profit organization, and others. To cater to birds of small and medium sizes, the boxes were of two types: 9 × 9 inch and 1 × 1 ft. Wildlife activists, however, demanded that the government take more conservation actions than just distributing bird boxes. [17]

In 2014, the government of India announced a plan to bring the number of vulture breeding centres to eight to replicate the successful model of JCBC, relocating some vultures from JCBC and all vultures from 19 zoos in India: [16]

  1. Rani Vulture Breeding Centre inside Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests at Rani in the Kamrup district of Assam; it was established in 2008 and housed 90 vultures as of December 2018. [18]
  2. Rajabhatkhawa Vulture Breeding Centre at Buxa National Park, West Bengal; it housed 120 vultures as of December 2018 and received a grant of INR2.5 crore. [18]
  3. Hydrabad Vulture Breeding Center at Nehru Zoological Park, Hyderabad
  4. Kerwa Vulture Breeding Center at Van Vihar National Park, Bhopal. [19]
  5. Junagadh Vulture Breeding Center at Sakkarbaug Zoological Garden, Junagadh
  6. Ranchi Vulture Breeding Center at Crocodile Breeding Centre, Muta, Ranchi
  7. Bhubaneswar Vulture Breeding Center at Nandankanan Zoological Park, Bhubaneswar

Vulture conservation at JCBC

JCBC research on vultures and diclofenac

The JCBC undertook research on vultures, their habitat, and the causes of their decline, and uses the resulting data for vulture advocacy. The centre's research confirmed the discovery that the use of anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac in cattle was a critical factor in the decline of vulture populations. [6] The Government of India banned the veterinary use of the drug in 2007–2008 as a result of research done at the centre; since then the use of diclofenac has diminished significantly, but it still remains a threat. [6]

"40 million vultures died in [the] last 20 years ... India should also prioritize vulture conservation as these birds are rarer than tigers. As many as 70 vultures consume a cow carcass in just half an hour which otherwise can rot, infecting domestic animals, pollut[ing] water and increas[ing] the number of stray dogs. So, if these valuable species [go] extinct, we will be held guilty for their disappearance.”

—  Jemima Parry-Jones, Director, International Centre for Birds of Prey, United Kingdom [18]

Species at JCBC

JCBC houses the following four species, three critically endangered and one threatened, for breeding and conservation: [6] [14]

Conservation and breeding activities

JCBC is world's largest facility in terms of numbers of vultures, [1] hosting an ever increasing 250 vultures in 2017 [6] and growing annually at a rate of more than 17% per year. [6] [1]

In 2007, aviculture at JCBC was started in the on-site vulture hatchery. [6] In 2016, the release in the wild program commenced for the first time in Asia. [1] In 2017, Asia's first satellite tracking of the released vultures started at JCBC. [6]

Starting in 2007, JCBC has successfully accelerated the breeding rate by doubling of the number of these otherwise slow to breed vulture species through the use of artificial incubation. [6] As a result of the successful breeding program, the number of vultures at JCBC rose by 17% in one year, from 214 vultures in 2016 [1] to 250 vultures in 2017. [6] JCBC has successfully released captured and rehabilitated as well as captive-bred vultures back into the wild after proper acclimatization and preparation. [6] [1] There is a ten-year plan to release 100 vultures from 2016 to 2026. [6]

In 2016, out of 214 vultures at JCBC, 76 were Indian vultures, 29 were slender-billed vultures, 107 were white-rumped vultures and two were Himalayan vultures (these two were released that year). [1] In 2016, Asia's first ever [20] vulture release program began on World Environment Day with the release of two Himalayan vultures, which were released with wing tags [19] and brightly colored ring tags [20] to enable field biologists to identify individual birds without recapture but did not have satellite-based tracking devices. [6] These two vultures were brought in in 2005 to lay eggs for breeding and were released into the wild in 2016, but could not be tracked due to the lack of satellite tracker. [6] These releases, according to principal scientist Vibhu Prakash, "gave us confidence to carry out future releases.” [21] In 2016, 15 vultures, 10 slender-billed and 5 white-rumped, were sent from JCBC to the Kerwa Vulture Breeding Center, located inside the Van Vihar National Park in Bhopal. [19]

In 2017, out of 250 vultures, 90 were caught for breeding and 160 have been bred in captivity in the natural setting of the Bir Shikargah Wildlife Sanctuary, which facilitates rehabilitation in a phased manner under wild-like conditions for eventual release. [6] JCBC started to use a satellite tracking system in 2017. [6] Vultures are acclimatized with dummy units before release. [6] Each satellite tracking unit, attached under the wings with lightweight, sturdy teflon string, relays the vulture's latitude and longitude four times a day during the three-year life span of the tracking unit. [6] If the reported location remains unchanging for a day, a ground team is sent to locate and investigate the bird. [6] In 2017, eight vultures were released with satellite trackers. These included a white-rumped vulture and two other vultures brought from the wild at the beginning of the program in 2007 for breeding purposes. [6]

In 2018, JCBC received a grant of INR3.5 crore for the conservation of vultures from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. [18]

Eight endangered white-rumped vultures were released into the wild In October 2020 and have since been reported to be adapting to their new habitat. [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vulture</span> Common name for a type of bird

A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture. Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to North and South America and consist of seven identified species, all belonging to the Cathartidae family. A particular characteristic of many vultures is a bald, unfeathered head. This bare skin is thought to keep the head clean when feeding, and also plays an important role in thermoregulation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old World vulture</span> Informal group of birds

Old World vultures are vultures that are found in the Old World, i.e. the continents of Europe, Asia and Africa, and which belong to the family Accipitridae, which also includes eagles, buzzards, kites, and hawks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eurasian griffon vulture</span> Species of bird

The Eurasian griffon vulture is a large Old World vulture in the bird of prey family Accipitridae. It may also be known as the Griffon vulture, though it may be used for the genus as a whole. It is not to be confused with the Rüppell's griffon vulture and Himalayan griffon vulture. It is closely related to the white-backed vulture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Himalayan vulture</span> Species of bird

The Himalayan vulture or Himalayan griffon vulture is an Old World vulture native to the Himalayas and the adjoining Tibetan Plateau. It is one of the two largest Old World vultures and true raptors. It is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. It is not to be confused with the Eurasian griffon vulture, which is a similar and sympatric species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-rumped vulture</span> Species of bird

The white-rumped vulture is an Old World vulture native to South and Southeast Asia. It has been listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2000, as the population severely declined. White-rumped vultures die of kidney failure caused by diclofenac poisoning. In the 1980s, the global population was estimated at several million individuals, and it was thought to be "the most abundant large bird of prey in the world". As of 2021, the global population was estimated at less than 6,000 mature individuals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian vulture</span> Species of vulture

The Indian vulture is an Old World vulture native to India, Pakistan and Nepal. It has been listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2002, as the population severely declined. Indian vultures died of kidney failure caused by diclofenac poisoning. It breeds mainly on hilly crags in central and peninsular India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape vulture</span> Species of bird

The Cape vulture, also known as Cape griffon and Kolbe's vulture, is an Old World vulture in the family Accipitridae. It is endemic to southern Africa, and lives mainly in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, and in some parts of northern Namibia. It nests on cliffs and lays one egg per year. In 2015, it had been classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, but was down-listed to Vulnerable in 2021 as some populations increased and have been stable since about 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slender-billed vulture</span> Species of bird

The slender-billed vulture is an Old World vulture species native to sub-Himalayan regions and Southeast Asia. It is Critically Endangered since 2002 as the population on the Indian subcontinent has declined rapidly. As of 2021, fewer than 870 mature individuals are thought to remain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buxa Tiger Reserve</span> Tiger reserve in West Bengal, India

Buxa Tiger Reserve is a tiger reserve and national park in northern West Bengal, India, covering an area of 760 km2 (290 sq mi). In altitude, it ranges from 60 m (200 ft) in the Gangetic Plains to 1,750 m (5,740 ft) bordering the Himalayas in the north. At least 284 bird species inhabit the reserve. Mammals present include Asian elephant, gaur, Sambar deer, clouded leopard, Indian leopard, and Asian golden cat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-headed vulture</span> Species of bird

The red-headed vulture, also known as the Asian king vulture, Indian black vulture or Pondicherry vulture, is an Old World vulture mainly found in the Indian subcontinent, with small disjunct populations in some parts of Southeast Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests</span> Ecoregion of India and Bhutan

The Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of Northeastern India, southern Bhutan and adjacent Bangladesh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pinjore</span> Town in Haryana, India

Pinjore is a town in Panchkula district in the Indian state of Haryana. This residential 'township', located close to Panchkula, Chandigarh, is set over 1,800 feet above the sea level in a valley, overlooking the Sivalik Hills. Pinjore is known for Pinjore Gardens, Asia's best 17th Century Mughal garden, and the Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) factory.

Kaziranga National Park is an Indian national park and a World Heritage Site in Golaghat and Nagaon districts of Assam, India. It is refuge for the world's largest population of great one-horned rhinoceros. Kaziranga has the highest density of tigers among protected areas in the world and was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2006. The park has large breeding populations of elephant, wild Asiatic water buffalo and swamp deer. Kaziranga is recognized as an Important Bird Area by Birdlife International for conservation of avifaunal species. The park has achieved notable progress in wildlife conservation with respect to other protected areas in India.Kaziranga was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2006

The Peregrine Fund is a non-profit organization founded in 1970 that conserves threatened and endangered birds of prey worldwide. The successful recovery of the peregrine falcon in the United States, which was removed from the U.S. Endangered Species List in 1999, enabled the organization to expand its mission to include other endangered raptors around the world. The Peregrine Fund is headquartered at its World Center for Birds of Prey in Boise, Idaho, on a 580-acre (2.3 km2) campus with breeding and research facilities, an administrative office, interpretive center, research library, and archives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jemima Parry-Jones</span> British ornithologist

Jemima Parry-Jones is a British authority on birds of prey (raptors), a conservationist, author, raptor breeder, lecturer, consultant and is the Director of the International Centre for Birds of Prey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian vulture crisis</span> Ecological crisis in Indian subcontinent

Nine species of vulture can be found living in India, but most are now in danger of extinction after a rapid and major population collapse in recent decades. In the early 1980s, three species of Gyps vultures had a combined estimated population of 40 million in South Asia, but as of 2017, the total population numbered only 19,000. With a catastrophic loss of over 99.95% of all the vultures in South Asia, the Indian vulture crisis represents the sharpest decline of any animal known to man in the same number of years. A major contributing factor in declining populations of vultures is believed to be widespread use of drugs such as diclofenac, once commonly used as a livestock anti-inflammatory drug. Veterinary usage of diclofenac has been banned in India since 2006. The IUCN Red Data Book has listed Gyps bengalensis as "critically endangered". In winter 2012, 56 vultures in three species and 10 steppe eagles were found dead at a dumping site in Jorbeer, Rajasthan. Six Eurasian griffons were found dead in May 2013 due to dehydration and wing weakness. The area has been declared as a conserved forest area, but the carcass dumping site is not part of the protected area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pheasant Breeding Centre, Morni</span> Endangered wildlife breeding in Haryana, India

The Pheasant Breeding Centre, Morni is a purpose-built centre for the breeding of pheasants situated in Panchkula district in Morni, a village and tourist attraction in the Morni Hills in the Panchkula district of the Indian state of Haryana. It is located around 45 kilometres (28 mi) from Chandigarh, 35 kilometres (22 mi) from Panchkula as its district and is known for its Himalayan views, flora, and lakes.

A vulture restaurant is a site where carrion, decaying flesh from dead animals, is deposited in order to be consumed by vultures, and is sometimes referred to more generally as supplemental feeding or provisioning. These stations can also be referred to as vulture feeding sites, vulture feeding stations, and vulture safe zones. This supplemental feeding practice is used to provide vultures with reliable, non-contaminated food sources or to aid in monitoring schemes. Vulture restaurants have been instituted as a method of vulture conservation in Europe and Africa since the 1960's and 70's, when vulture populations began to decline. This strategy is used because often population declines are attributed to low food availability, food contamination or insufficient nutritional quality, or feeding from human areas leading to conflict. Notably, large vulture population declines in South Asia, referred to as the Asian or Indian vulture crisis, and Africa, referred to as the African vulture crisis, have brought renewed attention to the uses and impacts of vulture restaurants. Vulture restaurants are used in Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America for various conservation and management plans. They can help combat food-derived threats to vultures, such as diclofenac or lead contamination or conflict with ranchers and poachers. The first vulture restaurant was built in South Africa in 1966. Vulture restaurants operate in a number of countries, including Nepal, India, Cambodia, South Africa, Eswatini, and Spain.

Jatayu vulture restaurant is the first community managed vulture restaurant in the world. It is located in Pithauli of Nawalparasi district in Nepal in the buffer zone of Chitwan National Park. It was established in 2006. It provides safe food to vulture. The facility attracts tourists and conservationists from around the world. The vultures fed at this place has been tracked to have reached up to Pakistan.

References

See also

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Environment Day: 2 Himalayan Griffon vultures released from breeding centre, Hindustan Times, 5 June 2016
  2. ↑ Two sparrow research centres to come up in Haryana, Indian Express, 10 Jan 2019.
  3. 1 2 "Haryana Forest Department". Archived from the original on 12 May 2014. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  4. ↑ Forests Department, Haryana
  5. ↑ Flight of Highly Endangered Vultures Grounded by Red Tape; TheQuint.com; Published: 8-May-2017
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Pinjore’s vultures on a wing and a prayer for survival, Vivek Gupta, Hindustan Times, 17 June 2017
  7. ↑ "Jatayu Conservation Breeding Centre, Pinjore". Forests Department, Haryana. 19 May 2014. Archived from the original on 17 December 2014. Retrieved 31 August 2014.
  8. ↑ [Rich, Pat V. ‘The Fossil Record of the Vultures: A World Perspective.’ Vulture Biology and Management. Ed. Sanford R. Wilbur and Andrew L. Jackson. Berkeley: U of California P, 1983. 3-25.]
  9. ↑ [Houston, David C., and J.E. Cooper. ‘The Digestive Tract of the Whiteback Griffon Vulture and Its Role in Disease Transmission among Wild Ungulates.’ Journal of Wildlife Diseases 11 (1975): 306-13.]
  10. ↑ [Houston, David C. ‘The Adaptive Radiation of the Griffon Vultures.’ Vulture Biology and Management. Ed. Sanford R. Wilbur and Andrew L. Jackson. Berkeley: U of California P, 1983. 135-52.]
  11. ↑ [Ferguson-Lees, James, and David A. Christie. Raptors of the World. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2001.]
  12. ↑ [Amadon, Dean. ‘Foreword.’ Vulture Biology and Management. Ed. Sanford R. Wilbur and Jerome A. Jackson. Berkeley: U of California P, 1983. ix-xi.]
  13. 1 2 3 4 The Value of Vultures: What’s a vulture worth? A lot more than you might think. Tony Juniper, Ensia by Institute on the Environment. 4 June 2014
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 Saving Asia's Vultures from brink, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
  15. 1 2 "Partners – Save Vultures" . Retrieved 30 December 2021.
  16. 1 2 Vultures to be bred at 8 more centres, 3 March 2014
  17. ↑ To give homes to sparrows and mynahs Haryana plans 6000 nest boxes in 6-districts, Times of India, 19 July 201.
  18. 1 2 3 4 Haryana may host 6-nation vulture meet next Nov., Times of India, 21 Dec 2018.
  19. 1 2 3 15 new vulture pairs brought to Bhopal conservation centre from Pinjore, Aditi Gyanesh, The Times of India, 6 Oct 2016
  20. 1 2 Asia's first vulture re-introduction programme launched in Haryana, Manjeet Sehgal, India Today, 3 June 2016
  21. 1 2 Vasudeva, Vikas (11 September 2021). "8 critically-endangered Oriental white-backed vultures fly towards survival from Haryana". The Hindu. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 9 November 2021.
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