There is a considerable increase in the number of Greater Adjutant Storks in and around Assam’s capital city, Guwahati this year.
Early Birds, a nature organisation associated with the census of the endangered bird species, during its census carried out last month has recorded presence of 227 birds in and around the Guwahati city.
“last year, the census has yielded in 158 birds in and around the city — which indicates that there is an increase of 69 Storks this year,” said Moloy Baruah, president of the Early Birds while talking to The Pioneer on Sunday.
Baruah, who had been associated with the census of the Greater Adjutant Storks since 2002 through his organization Early Birds, said that they have recorded the highest number of 288 birds in 2002. The census in 2010 recorded the lowest number of birds-only 113 birds, he said.
He blamed the rapid urbanisation in and around Guwahati as the main reason for declining number of the species and said that rapid urbanisation had been affecting the nesting sites of the species thereby affecting its population.
Notably, the Greater Adjutant Stork population all over the world is not more than 1,200 to 1,300, of which Assam alone accounts for 60 per cent.
Being a colonial bird, the Greater Adjutant Storks breed in colonies atop tall trees grown on private land. The survival of these birds mainly depends on the willingness and support of the nest tree owners towards the conservation effort.
There is a large colony of the endangered species in Dadara village near Guwahati in Assam. The villagers used to used to hate the Storks for scavenging and making their campus dirty. However, the Early Birds and other nature organizations of Assam have taken up steps and convinced the villagers about the importance of the scavenging birds to the ecology and they are now cooperating in an exemplary manner to help save the rare bird.
The colony of the rare Greater Adjutant Storks at the village has also become a sort of role model for conservation of rare avian species with community participation and bird watchers and conservation lovers often visit the village to see the Storks and the villagers’ love for the storks.