The UAE and Pakistan have invested much in preserving the Asian houbara which forms the nucleus of a joint conservation programme by the UAE and Pakistan through the International Fund for Houbara Conservation (IHFC) in both countries.

As a next stage in the conservation project of  the UAE and Pakistan to improve wild stocks of the Asian houbara, and involving the International Fund for Houbara Conservation (IFHC) in both countries , the UAE Air Force flew 600 rare birds (born and raised in Abu Dhabi ) to Pakistan recently as part of a joint conservation project. For both the nations , the release of Asian houbara bustard was a milestone.

It began last November, at the National Avian Research Centre in Sweihan, where the birds ready to be released were identified and prepared for transport.

The 600 houbaras hatched at the National Avian Research Centre in Sweihan are released at the Lal Souhanra National Park in Pakistan in a joint programme between the two countries. All of the houbara released  have been ringed, with 30 also fitted with GPS trackers to better study their movement and breeding patterns.

It is hoped that they could start breeding naturally by next year.

They were flown by the UAE Air Force from Abu Dhabi Airport to Bahawalpur in Punjab and then driven to the Lal Souhanra National Park.

Although the birds were hatched at the National Avian Research Centre in Sweihan, they are genetically identical to existing houbara populations in Pakistan.

To protect them from natural predators and poachers the birds have been introduced into a 15 kilometre-long fenced area of desert and scrub, ideal conditions for houbara.

While Asian houbara may migrate from central Asia as far as the Arabian Peninsula, those native to Pakistan tend to stay in one area, increasing their chances of survival.

The three-hour 40-minutes journey in a C130 transport aircraft was also the first time any of the birds had left the ground. Even for a bird well known for its ability to migrate across vast distances, it was a remarkable feat of aviation. From Abu Dhabi to the deserts of the Punjab, a journey of more than 2,000 kilometres and completed in less than four hours.

Because they are initially raised in cages, the moment of release was the first chance for the houbara to use their wings for real flight – which they did with enthusiasm.

Even before the aircraft had stopped, the rear ramp was opening to reveal a hold filled with stacked yellow crates, each containing six birds – 600 adult Asian houbara in total, apparently unperturbed by their epic voyage. If the birds seemed a little wide-eyed, it was only because this was their normal expression.

From Bahawalpur, a small city surrounded by wheat fields and sugar cane, they were taken by road to their new home at the Lal Souhanra National Park, much of which is part of the Cholistan Desert and ideal terrain for the houbara to live and breed.

Within half an hour of their arrival in Pakistan, the crates were being loaded onto a row of brightly painted lorries, the elaborately scrolled bodywork barely clearing the underside of the C-130's tail.

For the next two hours, they slowly made their way in a convoy protected by armed guards, past farms and Punjabi villages, navigating dirt tracks and packed carts pulled by camels, until the road narrowed to a sandy path flanked by dense undergrowth and trees that marked the park's entrance.

Along with local dignitaries, dozens of Pakistani media were invited to watch the release.

The release will be test of, or perhaps a testimony to, the bird?s instincts because they are raised in captivity, this will be the first time for them to properly try their wings. They are very clever birds and adapt quickly. They have the instinct for survival.

Finally, all is ready. The first bird was taken from its crate and gently tossed into the air. It flutters a few feet and then settles on the baking sand, looking around curiously. Its brothers and sisters are more adventurous. Soon, the sky is filled with dozens of wheeling houbara, testing their wings and enjoying life in their new home.

After many hours in confinement, the first act of many of the birds as they take flight is as inevitable as it is entirely natural. Along with drifting feathers, the air is filled with the unmistakably pungent odour of houbara droppings.

To further protect the Abu Dhabi birds, a compound, nearly 16 kilometres long and five kilometres wide has been created out of an area of desert dunes and scrub. It is surrounded by a high wire fence to keep out natural predators and guarded as a deterrent to smugglers, who capture live houbara to sell overseas – as well as being used for hunting, the bird?s meat has an erroneous reputation as an aphrodisiac.

The importance of last week?s release was underlined by their reception in Pakistan. A huge temporary marquee was erected in the desert, with the approach road lined with alternate UAE and Pakistani flags and giant photographs of the leaders of both countries.

 Source : The National , Gulf News