Forest department commits to save rare species

NASHIK: Efforts are being made to conserve the critically endangered Great Indian Bustard, known to have been spotted two years ago near Pimpalgaon, about 30 km from Nashik city. 

The forest department, along with the Nature Conservation Society of Nashik (NCSN), organized a seminar on the rare species on Thursday. Pramod Patil, a medical practitioner from the Bharat Natural History Society (BNHS), Mumbai, who studied and surveyed the bird in Solapur and is an expert on the Great Indian Bustard, spoke at the event and informed the staff of the forest department and the environment activists about the bird and its current status. 

As part of its preparations to conserve the species, the forest department, with the aid of the bird activists, will soon be conducting a survey of the grasslands where the near-extinct bird, also called 'Maldhok' in Marathi, was spotted two years ago. 

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Posters to deter slingshot killing of birds released

By Sumita Sarkar, TNN | Nov 13, 2012, 02.40 AM IST

NASHIK: The Nature Conservation Society of Nashik (NCSN) and the forest department jointly released posters, flexes and pamphlets on Monday— the birth anniversary of noted ornithologist Dr Salim Ali— to stop use of slings to kill birds in tribal areas. 

The posters and flexes will be put up at schools, village temples and other public places in the villages of Harsul where the use of slings to hunt birds is rampant. The NCSN and the west division of the forest department are carrying this out and 4,000 posters will be made and put up in Harsul.

The posters have photos and names of birds and an appeal to save the forest and the birds. "We will start putting up the posters within a week. We also need to do this for Peth, Surgana, Igatpuriand other tribal areas where slings are used to hunt birds," said Bishwaroop Raha, NSCN president.

"We have been conducting awareness campaigns in Harsul and now the use of slings have reduced by around 70%," he said.

He said that birds are important for the ecosystem since they eat insects, mosquitoes, worms etc and save crops from harmful pests. ""They can therefore protect us from mosquito-related diseases like dengue, malaria, etc," he said.

He said birds like peacocks, yellow-legged green pigeon - the state bird, shikra, jungle babbler, red-whiskered bulbul, drongo, black-headed oriole yellow-fronted pied woodpecker, scarlet minvet and others were seen in Harsul.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nashik/Posters-to-deter-slingshot-killing-of-birds-released/articleshow/17200060.cms