Birds of Pakistan

Siberian Crane

Grus leucogeranus

Local name: Safed Koonj (Urdu)

Description and Biology

The Siberian Crane, also known as Asiatic Crane is snow white overall, with red skin covering front of head, face and around the eyes. Bill is long, thick and dark pink in color; legs are pinkish red. Wing tips are black which is only visible in flight.The Siberian Crane is a fairly large crane having a  body length of about 1/5 meters. Both sexes are alike abut immature have brownish yellow plumage.

Siberian Cranes nest in scattered breeding territories, preferring wide expanses of fresh water with good visibility. Eggs are generally laid from late May to mid-June, with peak production occurring in the first week of June. In most cases two eggs are laid, with only one chick surviving to fledging. The incubation period is about 29 days, and chicks fledge at 70-75 days.

In general, Siberian Cranes consume a wider variety of food items, both aquatic and terrestrial, on their breeding grounds than on their wintering grounds. The diet on the breeding grounds consists of plants, including roots, rhizomes, sprouts of sedges, seeds, horsetails, and berries and cranberries, as well as insects, fish, frogs, small mammals (e.g., voles and lemmings), and other small aquatic animals (including, on occasion, waterfowl). Animal foods are especially important at the beginning of the breeding season, when plant foods are unavailable, and during the chick-rearing period.

Habitat and Distribution:

Crane hunting is a traditional sport in areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan where the population passes during migration

Sarus Crane

Grus antigone

Local name: Sarus Koonj (Urdu)
The sarus crane is the world's tallest flying bird; a large male may stand six feet tall. The notable feature of the Sarus is the grey and white body plumage, with a bright red head. These cranes reach sexual maturity after 5-6 years. 2-3 eggs are laid after an incubation period of 4-5 weeks. The life span is 15-20 years in captivity
In Pakistan only the Indian Sarus Crane is found in a very limited area in Tharparkar District of Sind Province, near the border with India. The current range of the Indian Sarus Crane includes the plains of northern, northwestern, and western India and the western half of Nepal’s Tarai lowlands. Sarus were never found in big numbers in Pakistan. Even in 1888 they were considered a rare bird in these areas as Pakistan is situated at its western historical limits. There are breeding records from some areas, for example a breeding pair was recorded from North Western Frontier Province in 1901. Another pair was seen breeding in Drigh lake in Sindh in 1929. In 1939 again a breeding pair was found from a nearby lake. In Pakistan Sarus crane was last seen in August 1968, when a pair was observed on Chenab River above Marala barrage and this was the last confirmed sighting of this bird in Pakistan.

Indian Blue Peafowl or Common Peafowl

 Pavo cristatus

Local Name: Moor (Urdu)

 Adult male
Fan-shaped crest and head metallic blue; a band from nostril to eye and a large patch under the eyes naked and white; neck and upper breast silky blue with green and purplish shades varying with the light, black metallic light green, each feather bordered with black and having a blue central streak and a V-shaped brown patch; those of the rump with a subterminal border of golden green; rectrices blackish brown with pale mottlings on the outer border; Female

Crest, crown, lores, and upper neck chestnut-brown, the feathers bordered with bronzy green; eyebrows, sides of head, and throat white; lower neck, upper back and upper breast metallic green; rest of upper-parts earthy brown, vermiculated with pale brown, the primaries and rectrices blackish brown with whitish spots on the outer border or at the tip, the rump and tail-coverts with more whitish vermicula-tions; lower breast dark brown with broad buff borders to the feathers; abdomen pale buff; thighs, vent and under tail-coverts earthy brown freckled with whitish. Iris brown, bill and legs horny brown.

In Pakistan the Indian Blue Peafowl in the wild state is only found in Tharparkar district of the province of Sind bordering India and in a small area of Azad Kashmir. According to a report from Mithi in the heart of Tharparkar, over the years trapping and illegal poaching has considerably reduced the population of this most beautiful of birds. Not only is the peacock prized as a pet bird, its wonderfully rich and colourful feathers too are used in a variety of decorative items. 

There are also captive populations of the this Peafowl in Kirthar National Park and other protected areas. 

 

White-backed Vulture

The Oriental White-backed Vulture (Gyps benegalensis) was once described as the commonest species of vulture found in the Indian sub-continent (Gilbert et al 2002). It was quoted as the most widely distributed species in Pakistan (Roberts 1991), occurring in provinces of Punjab, Sindh and North West Fortier Province (NWFP)

Studies conducted between 2000 and 2001 at two sites in the Punjab province of Pakistan also showed high mortality rates 11.4% and 18.6%. The necropsy of dead vultures showed that 80% of adults, 63% of sub-adults, 19% of juveniles and 13% of nestlings had visceral gout (Gilbert et al 2002) and this finding of consistent with the earlier reports from India (The Peregrine Fund 2000). The rate of decline in Pakistan was observed to be much higher than the conspecifics in India (The Peregrine Fund 2000). The trend of population decline was also obvious in other species of vultures; Long-billed vulture (Gyps indicus) and Slender-billed Vulture (Gyps tenuirostris), with status changed from ‘vulnerable’ to ‘critically endangered’ (The BirdLife International 2001).

Some rough estimates based on the rapid decline suggest that the population of oriental white-backed vultures might go extinct in as little as five years. South Asian countries have been really concerned about this rapid population decline and the involvement of international organisations has put immense pressure on the governments to urgently address this issue. A summit meeting entitled ‘A new environmental threat posed by the drug diclofenac’ was arranged in Kathmundu, Nepal. This summit brought together different organisations both from regional and international level that had been involved in the vulture conservation work such as WWF – Pakistan, Bird Conservation Nepal, BirdLife International, Bombay Natural History Society, Ornithological Society of Pakistan, Royal Society for Protection of Birds, The Peregrine Fund, Zoological Society of London also involving government representatives. The main objective of this summit is to come to a mutual agreement to deal with the vulture crisis. All parties agreed to a manifesto that suggests obtaining, holding and possibly breeding three Gyps species of vultures in captivity as a safety measure, until the threat of Diclofenac is removed from the environment.

White-Headed Duck

Wintering populations of the globally significant white-headed duck (Oxyura leucocephala) have decreased significantly in number during the last few years, with only an estimated 50 birds remaining. Wintering sites in Pakistan are limited to three adjoining wetlands, known as the Ucchali Complex in Punjab.

 

 

Marbled Teal

The Marbled teal (Marmaronetta angustirostris) is one of Pakistan's five resident duck species. It has an endangered status, but information on its population and local migration patterns is inadequate, as surveys have been limited to the Punjab. WWF-P plans to establish the status of Marbled teal in other provinces, before developing a national recovery plan to protect the Marbled teal and its crucial wetland habitat.

Western Tragopan

The most elusive of Pakistan's pheasants is the Western tragopan (Tragopan melanocephalus). Although they were once common in the Western Himalayas, only a small population now survives in Keyal and Palas valleys, in Indus Kohistan, and in Azad Kashmir. The species is classified as threatened with extinction. Like other tragopans, Western tragopan pheasants have richly patterned and spotted plumage, with contrasting areas of bare skin around their throats and eyes. Comparatively, little is known about these shy and nervous birds, which live in inaccessible, high-altitude areas. Although attempts have been made at capturing these elusive birds since 1837, a captive breeding programme has never been established. The survival of the Western tragopan depends on protecting their habitat.