Arab royal hunters, vanishing grasslands to power lines — Great Indian Bustard’s fight for survival

On 4 October, two captive-bred male Great Indian Bustards (GIBs) stepped into Rajasthan’s Desert National Park–doing what their ancestors did without a second thought: walking in the wild. This ambitious comeback, however, has been years in the making. Since 2019, wild eggs have been rescued, artificially incubated, and hand-reared at Rajasthan’s Sam and Ramdevra conservation centres. Today, 98 birds call the breeding centres their home. Outside those wired fences, however, scarcely 150 remain in the wild. Yet, not so long ago, the bustard was everywhere. Eleven states. One bird. And an entirely different India. From commanding Indian grasslands to surviving in desert pockets–what went wrong? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Exclusive content, special privileges & more – Subscribe to ThePrint for Special benefits: https://tinyurl.com/4ymm9wh5 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Connect with ThePrint » Subscribe to ThePrint: https://tinyurl.com/4ymm9wh5 » Subscribe to our YouTube Channel: https://bit.ly/3nCMpht » Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theprintindia » Tweet us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/theprintindia » Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theprintindia » Find us on LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/company/theprint » Subscribe to ThePrint on Telegram: https://t.me/ThePrintIndia » Find us on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2NMVlnB » Find us on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pEOta8