A few decades back, there was hardly any village in the state of Gujarat which didn’t fall in the distribution range of the Lesser Florican (Sypheotides indica). As the local name ‘Khadmor’ (Khad = Grass, Mor = Peacock) indicates, the Lesser Florican resembles the Indian Peafowl (Pavo cristatus), and lives in grassland habitats. This bird is a keystone species of healthy grasslands. The bird’s wide spread distribution of the past has changed significantly now.
Its popularity … Read More
At least 400 Greater Flamingos have died due to electrocution by high tension cables near their breeding grounds in Gujarat. The flamingos breed in the warm marshes of the Khadir region in Kutch. The chief conservator of forests has admitted to atleast 130 deaths, but locals and ornithologists have recorded much higher number of deaths. Deaths are said to be taking place at nights, when the birds would fly into the near invisible wires after being disturbed by passing vehicles … Read More
A National Centre for Marine Biodiversity (NCMB) is coming up in Jamnagar, Gujarat. The centre will have the goal of safeguarding the biodiversity of coastal area. It is the first research institute set up in a public private partnership in the country. Jamnagar is close to India’s only Marine National Park in the Gulf of Kutch. The overall mission of the centre will be to support integrated management of coastal and marine biodiversity and ensure sustainable development and hazard management. … Read More
A four to five year old leopard was rescued from a Narmada canal in Junagadh district. Villagers from Chelaka village had alerted the department and the leopard was found taking rest in a 2.5 feet radius pipe. After a three hour operation, the forest department succeeded in getting the animal to enter a cage kept at the one end of the pipe. The leopard appears to have travelled from Sasan Forests which are a part of the Gir Wildlife Sanctuary.… Read More
The Gujarat State government has sent a proposal to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests for constructing a ring road around Gir National Park. The proposed 269-km road will connect villages on the periphery of Gir. Currently, around six state highways and other minor roads cut through Gir. There have been incidents where vehicular traffic caused accidental lion deaths as well as incidents of the inner roads being used for poaching. The ring road proposal includes 14 flyovers and … Read More
A male lion died in a territorial fight with another male lion in Gir National Park. The cause of death was confirmed by a post mortem on the dead lion. The park is currently closed for the annual breeding season of the lions. There are currently 411 asiatic lions in Gir National Park.… Read More
The Gujarat government has asked for central assistance in implementing two projects towards Lion Conservation in Gir — Asiatic lions’ only abode. The state government has submitted a proposal for “The long term conservation of lions on Brhuhad Gir” with an estimated cost of Rs 262.36 crores. This proposal includes strengthening protection, habitat development, wild life health care, minimizing man animal conflicts, eco development work, use of modern technology, public awareness and eco tourism. A second proposal is to build … Read More
A male lion died in a territorial fight with another male lion in Gir National Park. The cause of death was confirmed by a post mortem on the dead lion. The park is currently closed for the annual breeding season of the lions. There are currently 411 asiatic lions in Gir National Park.… Read More
Hundreds of flamingos are dying of electrocution daily as they fly into high-voltage electricity cables on the outskirts of Bhavnagar city. The situation is made worse by stray dogs which attack these birds, causing the flock to take off in panic and hit the high-tension lines.
After Times of India reported the incident, officials visited the 300-hectare marsh on the outskirts of Bhavnagar on Sunday. Officials of Gujarat Energy Transmission Corporation Limited (GETCO) claim that there could be reasons … Read More
The Gujarat forest department wants about 3,000 hectares of revenue land near the Bustard Sanctuary in Naliya taluk of Kutch district to be converted into forest land to save the crtitically endangered Great Indian Bustard.
“We have written to the revenue department to convert the revenue land adjoining the Bustard Sanctuary (in Naliya taluk of Kutch) to forest land which could be used for conservation of the Great Indian Bustard. We are yet to get any reply from revenue department … Read More
An article in the esteemed journal Molecular Ecology has stated that African Cheetahs are genetically very different from their Asiatic Counterpart and hence has started a debate on the government’s ambitious Rs. 300 crore Cheetah reintroduction project. The article states that “Asiatic Cheetahs are unambiguously separated from African subspecies” with divergence estimates placing the split at “32,000 to 67,000 years ago”. The Asiatic subspecies is severely threatened with only 70-110 individuals existing in Iran. However, the African subspecies is present … Read More
Cheetah is the only mammal which has become extinct in India since 1947. However, a section of natural historians believes that India did not have an indigenous cheetah population and it was introduced by the Moguls who brought them from Iran for hunting purposes. And though there are depictions of a cheetah-like animal in prehistoric cave paintings here, some think that it might just be a leopard.
This debate will persist. But our government has decided to reintroduce the cheetah. … Read More
A massive thermal power plant planned on the Kutch coast in Gujarat continues to face pressures from the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF). OPG Power Gujarat Private Limited is behind the project, which threatens the sensitive coastal environment of Bhadreshwar. There are accusations that OPG Power did not carry out its obligations to hold public hearings, as well as violations of state government directives to not begin any activity until environmental clearance was obtained. There are also accusations that … Read More
The Gujarat forest and environment department has banned entry of vehicles on the roads passing through Gir National Park and Sanctuary, the last abode of Asiatic Lions, at night.
The move by the forest department will give a much needed relief to the wildlife in the Gir as about 10 important roads pass through the sanctuary. This step will decrease the risk of accident to animals and also save it from disturbance and noise pollution.… Read More
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