Overview
- Rajasthan conservation centres reported 11 chicks this season, including three conceived through natural mating, which officials say shows lower stress in captivity.
- In Gujarat, a chick hatched after a captive-incubated egg from Rajasthan was placed under a wild female in Kachchh in a government-run jumpstart trial.
- The egg was moved about 770 kilometers to replace an infertile wild egg, following coordination between state wildlife teams and the national environment ministry.
- Rajasthan is preparing to release 79 birds into protected grasslands, with predator-proof pens and bird diverters on high-voltage lines to cut collision deaths.
- Scientists credit the Bustard Recovery Programme, launched in 2016 with state, federal and international partners, though wild numbers likely remain under 200 and face lethal power lines.