Ban on Houbara Bustard to be decided at next hearing: LHC

Shahzad Ahmad

March 12, 2019

LAHORE - The Houbara Bustard Commission headed by Dr Pervez Hassan on Monday submitted a report and requested the Lahore High Court that the hunting of houbara bustard be banned till the next survey.

The Lahore High Court on Monday remarked that the issue of imposing a ban on the hunting of houbara bustard will be decided on April 6, the next date of hearing, and directed the government to file reply in the case.

The commission submitted that after survey of 2018 the houbara bustard specie is decreasing hence its hunting be banned till the final survey report.

Justice Shakilur Rehman Khan observed that if the federal government could file objections before the next date of hearing it can do so. The court adjourned the hearing till April 6 and observed that the court will make an order on the next date of hearing regarding imposition of ban on the hunting of the rare species. Sheraz Zaka Advocate and Kalim Illyas on behalf of petitioners submitted that houbara bustard is vulnerable specie. They submitted that the government be restrained from allowing hunting permits before the next survey to be held in November. They submitted that in the light of survey report houbara bustard is deteriorating and hence foreign dignitaries not be allowed to hunt.

Commission submits report to court on situation about endangered bird

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Captive-breeding will not save wild Asian Houbara without regulation of hunting

Date:  November 13, 2018

Source:  University of East Anglia

The survival of the heavily exploited Asian Houbara depends on the regulation of trapping and hunting, according to research led by the University of East Anglia (UEA).

New findings published today reveal that trying to stabilise populations solely through captive breeding will require the release of such large numbers it will inevitably compromise wild populations.

The Asian Houbara, a large, spectacular bird that breeds from the Middle East through Asia, is of major cultural and political significance because of Arab falconry, with hunting influencing international diplomacy. The species is threatened by uncontrolled hunting and poaching, which has caused its decline in the Middle East and Central Asia since the 1960s.

Attempts to conserve the species while also supporting the ancient tradition of Arabian falconry have focused on releasing captive-bred birds in increasing numbers. But research published today in the journal Biological Conservation shows that the species in Uzbekistan is declining by more than 9 per cent each year, and that the number of captive-bred birds needed to be released annually just to stabilise this population would be 1.5 times larger than the wild population itself.

Although captive-breeding can help rescue species from extinction, it bears many risks [see Notes to editors], and such mass-scale releases may compromise the fitness of wild populations. Sustainable hunting and conservation instead needs an integrated approach that also includes controls on hunting, according to Prof Paul Dolman, professor of conservation ecology in UEA's School of Environmental Sciences.

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Houbara conservation helps improve people’s lives in 17 countries

UAE’s International Fund for Houbara Conservation (IFHC) has produced 400,000 houbara, senior official says

Published: 19:44 November 4, 2018

Binsal Abdul Kader, Senior Reporter

Abu Dhabi: A long-term effort to protect an endangered bird has helped improve lives of many villagers in 17 countries, according to a senior official.

The UAE has been carrying out an ambitious programme since 1970s to conserve the houbara bustard, a large-bodied bird, with long legs and a slender neck that has been synonymous with Arab culture and an integral part of traditional Emirati hunts.

This programme has helped socio-economic development around protected areas in the bird’s range countries, from Morocco to Mongolia, a top official told Gulf News on Sunday.

“The houbara conservation programme has made a positive impact on ecosystems [in those countries]. The life comes back easily there and flora and fauna grow up, which helps improve the agriculture [in the surrounding areas]. This enriches the livelihood of farmers and farmworkers,” said Dr Thani Bin Ahmad Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment.

The houbara habitats are hotspots of recreational hunting that has augmented ecotourism, offering opportunities of jobs and enterprises for local communities, he said on the sidelines of an international summit on the conservation of the houbara in Abu Dhabi, organised by the UAE’s International Fund for Houbara Conservation (IFHC).

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Pakistan allows shipping of 150 falcons to UAE despite hunting ban

By News Desk

Published: September 30, 2018

Pakistan has allowed shipment of 150 Shaheen falcons to the United Arab Emirates, despite a ban on the hunting of the endangered bird at home, Express News reported.

The falcons are being shipped for Dubai’s ruler Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum.

Pakistan has placed a complete ban on the hunting of rare and migratory birds. Prime Minister Imran Khan has also barred the hunting of Shaheens in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

Every year, endangered and migratory birds flock to Pakistan along Sindh’s coastal belt and desert area to avoid spending winters in Siberia.

With this, the federal government invites Arab dignitaries  to hunt these birds as sport every year.

Hunt the endangered Houbara bustard and other migratory birds in Pakistan is the favourite pastime of Arab princes.

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UAE releases 1,000 Houbara Bustard in RYK in pursuit of conservation

May 12, 2018

In the presence of UAE Embassy in Islamabad and representatives of Fund for Houbara Conservation (IFHC) Abu Dhabi and officials of Forest, Wildlife and Fisheries Department of the Punjab province and Pakistani media, the UAE released 1,000 Houbara birds in Rahim Yar Khan as part of its constant pursuit and efforts of preservation, and an achievement of the United Arab Emirates.

On this occasion H.E. Hamad Obaid Al Zaabi, the UAE Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, said that the UAE has achieved a distinguished position on global level in its efforts to conserve the Houbara and its leading role been recognized in this field. Family breeding projects have been launched in Abu Dhabi for more than 40 years, and have achieved outstanding results despite the difficulty in houbara’s captivity of producing for its distinguished habitate from other birds that can be multiplied in captivity. On this occasion, the Ambassador said that the UAE is the first country in the world to track Houbara birds through satellites during their migrating from north to south, founder of the United Arab Emirates, at that time the late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, sensed the dangers for Houbara, and he began to warn that if we do not initiate the successful ways to protect this rare species, the Houbara will eventually become extinct and will disappear from our heritage and the future of our children.

Al Zaabi revealed that the story of the success of Abu Dhabi’s efforts in breeding Houbara, specifically in 1977, and of the Al-Ain Zoo, with no more than seven Asian Houbaras, was the first nucleus of captive breeding in the United Arab Emirates. After prolong efforts to lay the foundations for captivity breeding programs with a firm and strong determination for several years, the first Asian chick was successfully produced in captivity in 1982.

H.E. recalled that H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan described this remarkable moment as saying: ‘If I forget, I will not forget that day when this good news conveyed to the late Sheikh Zayed and the feelings of human beings and the joy that filled his life as the promising results fruited that this rare bird will begin to multiply in the heart of the UAE’s vibrant environment. His Highness stressed that the UAE’s keenness to raise, study and preserve Houbara comes from a sense of responsibility, as Houbara defines the ancient heritage and deeply rooted history for more than two thousand years and a genuine tendency to preserve one of the pillars of our national heritage, which we inherited from our parents and grandparents, therefore, preserving it is a safeguard for species and for this ancient heritage and authentic traditions, and it is only adopted by those of thought and determination.

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Second batch of rare houbara bird to be reintroduced in Jordan in February

1/15/2018 10:44:03 PM

(MENAFN - Jordan Times) AMMAN – A new batch of the houbara bustard, a rare desert bird that has been extinct in Jordan until recently, will be released back to its natural habitat under an ongoing programme to reintroduce the bird to the Kingdom, a conservationist said on Monday.

The houbara bustard, recognised by nature conservationists as 'an icon of the Arabian desert', will be released in February under the second phase of a programme started in 2014 under a partnership between the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) and the Abu Dhabi-based International Fund for Houbara Conservation (IFHC).

The RSCN and the IFHC on Sunday signed the agreement of the programme's second phase, after field surveys proved the success of the first phase with the apparition of nests and chicks, RSCN Director General Yehya Khaled said.

"The new batch of birds will be released under the second phase in February in the historical habitat of the houbara, including Wadi Araba, the eastern and northeastern desert," Khaled told The Jordan Times.

The second phase will last until 2022, Khaled said, noting that the society will release batches every year.

The IFHC will be transferring the birds to Jordan from breeding centres located abroad, according to the RSCN official.

The houbara bustard reintroduction programme started in Jordan as an initiative of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, crown prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy supreme commander of the UAE armed forces, according to the RSCN, which said that the bird was last recorded in Jordan in the 1990s due to the destruction of its habitat and high levels of hunting.

A total of 1,300 birds has been released in Jordan between 2014 and 2017, according to the society, which reported sightings of houbara nests in the east of the country, nest and chicks in Wadi Araba and nesting in the Wadi Rum area.

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Convoy of Qatari royal hunting rare bird attacked in southwestern Pakistan

Mon Jan 16, 2017 2:3PM

A Qatari royal family member on an expedition to hunt rare birds using falcons has come under attack by a group of villagers in Pakistan's southwestern province of Balochistan, officials say.

Muhammad Yasar, a local Pakistani official, said on Monday that three security guards were wounded after a group of villagers brandishing guns and knives attacked the convoy of a Qatari royal family member on Sunday evening in the Musakhel district of the troubled province.

"A case has been registered against 25 people," Yasar said.

Arab sheikhs regularly travel to Pakistan to hunt the houbara bustards using falcons.

Meanwhile, a Qatari official involved in the sport of falconry confirmed the assault by a large group of men on the convoy of hunters, which included a royal family member. He, however, declined to identify the individual.

"Qatari hunters apply and pay for government hunting permits and donate to local communities and wildlife conservation," the Qatari official said, adding, "Unfortunately there have been attacks led by armed groups."

The Pakistani government began issuing permits to houbara hunters for royals from the Persian Gulf countries in the 1970s. The move was initially seen as a way to forge diplomatic ties with them after rival India imposed a ban on hunting the birds.

In 2014, a Saudi prince illegally hunted more than 2,000 houbara bustards, which are protected under Pakistani law. The Saudi prince went on a hunting spree for rare birds in province of Balochistan.

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Pakistan Supreme Court Overturns Ban on Hunting Rare Bird

JAN 22, 2016 09:17 AM ET // BY AFP

Pakistan’s Supreme Court Friday overturned its decision to ban the hunting of the houbara bustard, a rare desert bird whose meat is prized among Arab sheikhs as an aphrodisiac.

News that the monarch butterfly has nearly vanished from the planet means it may be be deemed an endangered species. What does that mean?

Wealthy hunting parties from the Gulf travel to Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province every winter to kill the houbara bustard using hunting falcons.

The issue has also cast a spotlight on traditionally close ties between Pakistan and its allies in the Arab world, particularly Saudi Arabia.

A provincial High Court in Balochistan in November 2014 cancelled all permits for hunting in the province, but the federal government headed by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif — a close ally of Saudi Arabia — continued to issue licenses.

Last year the Supreme Court banned hunting of the bird entirely, in a decision welcomed by wildlife campaigners.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature includes the bird on its “red list” of threatened species, estimating there are fewer than 97,000 left globally.

But the federal and provincial governments asked the court to review the decision, claiming that controlled hunting was a tool for preservation and should be allowed.

In a judgement issued Friday, the court said it had set aside its original decision to ban hunting of the bird and that petitions on the issue would be listed for fresh hearings.

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Pakistan court lifts ban on rare bird hunting

Pakistan's Supreme Court today lifted a ban on hunting of a rare bird, houbara bustard, whose meat is prized among Arab sheikhs as an aphrodisiac.

By Press Trust of India on January 22, 2016 at 4:43 PMEmail

Islamabad, Jan 22: Pakistan’s Supreme Court today lifted a ban on hunting of a rare bird, houbara bustard, whose meat is prized among Arab sheikhs as an aphrodisiac. The ban was imposed by former chief justice Jawwad S Khawaja on August 20, who also ordered the cancellation of all existing permits issued by government to Arab rulers. The federal and provincial governments in October had challenged the ban, pleading that sustainable hunting should be allowed. A five-member larger bench headed by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali lifted the ban in a verdict on the review petitions.

Though the decision was not unanimous and there was one dissenting note by Justice Qazi Faez Isa who opposed the bench’s order. The petitioners had pleaded that issuing hunting permits to Arabs dignitaries was part of foreign policy. The attorney general (AG) Salman Butt asked the Supreme Court to allow “sustainable hunting” of the bird. Pakistan enjoys good ties with Arab rulers who love hunting houbara. Its meat is considered having aphrodisiac value. 

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Pakistan enforces hunting ban on Houbara bustard

Pakistan's Supreme Court has ordered a total ban on the hunting of the Houbara bustard, an endangered migratory bird prized by hunters from the Gulf states.

The court has asked the government to enforce international conventions on conservation which Pakistan has signed.

The Houbara bustard, about the size of a chicken, once flourished on the Arabian peninsula but has been hunted almost to extinction.

Many in the Middle East believe the bird's meat is an aphrodisiac.

The International Union of the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) estimates the global population of Houbara bustards at between 50,000 and 100,000 and includes it on its red list of threatened species.

The BBC's Ilyas Khan in Islamabad says that although hunting the birds has been banned in Pakistan, the government has routinely made exceptions for Middle Eastern dignitaries on grounds of diplomatic expediency and because they bring "investment in the social sector" like hospitals and schools.

In 2014, a Saudi royal hunting party killed more than 2,000 Houbara bustards in a 21-day safari in Chagai, Balochistan, Pakistan's Dawn newspaper reported.

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For Saudis and Pakistan, a Bird of Contention

For decades, royal Arab hunting expeditions have traveled to the far reaches of Pakistan in pursuit of the houbara bustard — a waddling, migratory bird whose meat, they believe, contains aphrodisiac powers.

Little expense is spared for the elaborate winter hunts. Cargo planes fly tents and luxury jeeps into custom-built desert airstrips, followed by private jets carrying the kings and princes of Persian Gulf countries along with their precious charges: expensive hunting falcons that are used to kill the white-plumed houbara.

This year’s hunt, however, has run into difficulty.

It started in November, when the High Court in Baluchistan, the vast and tumultuous Pakistani province that is a favored hunting ground, canceled all foreign hunting permits in response to complaints from conservationists.

Those experts say the houbara’s habitat, and perhaps the long-term survival of the species, which is already considered threatened, has been endangered by the ferocious pace of hunting.

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Saudi prince to hunt rare bird in Chagai despite court ban

KARACHI: An advance party of a Saudi prince has arrived with his falcons in Chagai district of Balochistan where he will be hunting game birds for a few weeks, according to sources.

The federal government issues special permits to members of royal families of the Gulf states to allow them to hunt the protected houbara bustard.

Like earlier this year also, a part of Chagai district has been allocated to the Governor of Tabuk, Prince Fahd bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, for the purpose.

Last year, media reports that the prince had hunted 2,100 rare birds had sparked an international outcry.

A few weeks ago, the Balochistan High Court (BHC) cancelled all special hunting permits issued by the federal government.

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Afghan Police Shoot Rare Bird They Thought Had A Bomb

Fearing that the Taliban had begun weaponizing wildlife, Afghan police in Faryab Province shot a bird wearing a "small antenna and suspicious device," NBC News reported. Upon being hit, the bird "exploded," according to police chief Abdul Nabi Ilham. In an unfortunate twist for all involved, the bird appears to be a vulnerable species called a houbara bustard, rarely seen in Afghanistan. Officials collected what they think are traces of a GPS tracker, not an actual bomb, from the bird.

Though it would mark the first time a Taliban conscript had feathers, there’s a long, strange history of enlisting animals in war. Not only have combatants ridden horses or relied on dogs to sniff out bombs, but in World War II, the U.S. military also trained pigeons to pilot simulated missiles, and they strapped actual bombs to bats (neither project was implemented). War dolphins are a more recent — and controversial — phenomenon, with Russia seizing trained Ukrainian cetaceans in March.

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Court bans houbara bustard hunt in Balochistan

QUETTA-

The Balochistan High Court (BHC) issued orders to cancel the allotment of area to Arabs and other foreigners for hunting birds, including the rare houbara bustard in the provice, private media reported on Friday.

The BHC bench, comprising of Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Ejaz Swati, gave the ruling over two petitions which challenged hunting by royals from Gulf Countries in Balochistan, delcaring hunting houbara bustard and other wild birds ‘illegal.’

The bench issued issued to the Wild Life Department, Federal Interior Ministry and Chief Secretary of Balochistan Saifullah Chattha, seeking report over what steps have been taken for protecting the rare birds in Balochistan.

In hunting season, royal families from the Gulf countries head to Balochistan to hunt Houbara Bustard birds who use Balochistan as a transit route while they migrate to warmer climates in central and south Asia.

Royal families from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and Bahrain are allocated hunting areas in Balochistan every year and are provided with permits and tight security by the authorities.

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Saudi prince's rare bird hunt stirs outrage in Pakistan after massive loan

By F. Riaz23 hours agoYahoo News

LAHORE, Pakistan - Gulf Arab sheiks have long enjoyed close ties with Pakistan, but a Saudi prince's recent shooting spree, which culled more than 2,000 rare birds from preserves, has stirred outrage in the country, just as Saudi Arabia propped up its economy with a $1.5 billion loan.

Pakistan's English-language daily newspaper Dawn broke the story this week based on a forest service report, "Visit of Prince Fahad bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud regarding hunting of houbara bustard," which detailed a three-week safari the prince and his entourage took. In all, the Saudi hunting party bagged 2,100 endangered houbara bustards. The prince, who owns a U.K.-built 270-foot motor superyachtand has a website depicting his philanthropic ventures, racked up the high score: 1,977 rare birds.

The houbara bustard appears on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List as vulnerable to extinction, with Pakistan's population of 110,000 feared to be decreasing by 30 percent a year. The prince's hunting party pursued the bustards on bird and wildlife sanctuaries and unprotected land across Pakistan's southwestern Baluchistan province.

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Dubai scientists successfully breed rare birds in chicken eggs

Scientists in Dubai have hatched an endangered desert bird with the help of a common chicken egg, in what they hope will be a major boost for conservation.

The Central Veterinary Research Laboratory team has been successful in breeding houbara bustard chicks, a rare falconry prey that is in decline in the UAE.

They believe the new implant system will “provide a tool to hatch damaged eggs, as well as soft-shelled eggs of endangered wild birds”, according to their research paper released this week. With funding from UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the researchers placed fertilised houbara yolks in the whites of chicken eggs and other surrogate houbara eggs to see if they would develop.

The found that after four days, 76 per cent of the yolks surrounded by chicken egg whites and 61 per cent surrounded by houbara egg whites were still alive.

The yolks, and the whites surrounding them, were then moved to bigger chicken eggs to give them a better chance to grow. In the end, two houbara chicks hatched from the chicken egg whites and one hatched from the houbara egg white, comprising seven per cent and five per cent of the samples in the experiment.

While the technique needs to be refined further, it shows that rare bird yolks can hatch in other eggs. This could help the chicks survive if the shell of their own egg is damaged. The findings are significant for the houbara, which is a favourite meal for falcons and therefore a major target for falconers.

However, their numbers have plunged throughout the Gulf because of over-hunting and loss of habitat. The team was particularly keen on trying this technique after watching British scientists clone a sheep known as Dolly. International teams of scientists soon discovered that it is extremely difficult to clone birds because of the complications in extracting genetic material. The Dubai research team hopes this new technique will advance science while also conserving rare species of birds around the world.

http://www.7daysindubai.com/Dubai-scientists-successfully-breed-rare-birds/story-19717760-detail/story.html

Endangered Houbara bustard bird making return

The presence of an extremely rare bird – the Houbara bustard – in Israel has increased by 10 percent in comparison to last year.

The Israel Nature and Parks Authority counted 192 individuals on Friday in the Hatzerim area, west of Beersheba.

Photo: Assaf Moroz

One of the largest, rarest and most impressive birds in Israel, the Houbara bustard tends to prefer a desert environment and many of its behaviors are still not completely known, the INPA said.

In 2001, there were only about 500 Houbaras in the country, nesting predominantly in the Negev and the Arava. Over the past decade their population decreased by 20 percent and therefore became critically endangered, the authority said.

“The Houbara serves us as a kind of indicator for loss of soil and desert shrubbery and is of course a flag-bearer for preserving these habitats,” the INPA said.

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Endangered birds: Sheikh Hamdan does his bit to conserve bustard species

The terrestrial bird species of houbara bustard are native to dry lands of South, and severely endangered owing to unchecked hunting practices.

In the past, Arab Sheikhs have been blamed for targeting these bird species in Pakistan. However, recently, Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Al Maktoum, the crown prince of Dubai, in his latest campaign to protect the endangered species of wildlife in Pakistan, has procured about 200 houbara bustards to be set free in friendly habitats of parks in Pakistan, including the Kirthar National Park lying between Karachi and Dadu, and the Hingol National Park which lies on the Makran coast.

This would not only help in conserving these species but also help in their breeding, thus increasing their numbers, and helping the species recover from endangerment.

It is reported that these birds were actually recovered from a local market where these illegally poached endangered species are discreetly available for sale, at a price for Rs50,000 for each bird.

Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohd Al Maktoum has been actively engaged in the promotion of wildlife conservation in Pakistan with special emphasis on endangered species like the houbara bustard.

When contacted, the Sheikh’s spokesman passionately talked about the importance of conservation of wildlife and His Highness’s continued commitment to the cause and future plans.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 18th, 2013.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/522469/endangered-birds-sheikh-hamdan-does-his-bit-to-conserve-bustard-species/