Amur falcons, are a lesser known threatened species of raptors. What could be the most of surprising part about these birds, is the migratory path they followed. Amur falcons usually travelled through Maharashtra and Gujarat, but to everyones surprise in the beginning of May they were spotted in Rajasthan.
These Falcons through one of the longest migratory routes of the Birds. They travel almost half way across the globe, up to 22,000 Kms. Rajasthan was never anticipated as a migratory path of these birds by the Ornithologists.
In 2013, Ornithologists made an effort to track the migratory route of Amur falcons and input efforts for the conservation of the Falcons. Satellite Chips were attached to three Amur falcons named Naga, Pankti and wokha. They chips weighed only 5 grams. They were useful in the monitoring of the migratory path of the birds, through Satellite imaging. The satellite-tagging was a collaborative effort of the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS-UNEP), Birdlife Hungary, ministry of environment, forest & climate change (MOEFCC) and the Nagaland forest department.
The entire Migratory path of the Falcon was plotted by the Ornithologists. The bird named, Naga travelled from Nagaland to South Africa, Mongolia and back to Nagaland. Naga has crossed over Rajasthan for the first time this May. Scientists believe that this may be the way for other Falcon species, The Times of India reports.
A survey shows that about 1,20,000 to 1,40,000 birds were being killed by trapping for human consumption, when they visit Nagaland for breeding. In order to save the species from being extinct, during the migratory process Ornithologists are determined for the conservation of the species.
