Officials of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Wildlife Department holding falcons seized from illegal hunters in Peshawar, Pakistan. Credit: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPS

By Ashfaq Yusufzai
PESHAWAR, Apr 2 2013 (IPS)

While the Taliban’s military activities continue to plague Pakistan’s northern Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), the incessant violence has been a blessing in disguise for one creature: the falcon.

Declared endangered by the Union for the Conservation of Nature, this bird of prey suffered for years at the hands of poachers and hunters, whose unfettered access to FATA and the adjacent Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province guaranteed the birds a short life span in the wild, with most destined to be trapped, killed or sold.

But “continued militancy has kept the poachers (and hunters) away,” Khalid Shah, an official at the KP Wildlife Department, told IPS, adding that the survival rate of falcons and some other migratory birds has “increased tremendously”.

In 2005 only 2,000 falcons lived in these northern territories, but by 2008 wildlife officials had recorded an increase of up to 8,000 birds.

Experts trace this population growth to the beginning of the insurgency here, which began after the 2001 U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan toppled the government in Kabul and sent scores of Taliban and Al Qaeda members across the border into Pakistan’s sprawling mountainous terrain.

Being the U.S. ’s ally in the so-called “war on terror”, the Pakistan army has engaged in a military offensive to root out the insurgents, believed to be scattered across all seven districts that comprise FATA.

Under fire from both sides, civilian residents say militancy has made daily activities – among them hunting and poaching — impossible.

Hunting, trapping, poaching

Falcons begin arriving in Pakistan from Siberia, China, Russia and Afghanistan during the months of August and September and either take up residence in desert landscapes, or nest in the foothills of arid regions.

In FATA the birds find a ready supply of food in the form of “reptiles, mammals, insects and small birds”, while thickly-forested parts of the tribal areas offer a safe and natural habitat, wild conservationist Ali Murad told IPS.

Besides playing host to migratory guests, the region is also home to several indigenous falcon species. In total, Pakistan boasts 10 falcon species at the height of the migration season.

The number of falcons in northern Pakistan has increased from 2,000 to 8,000 since the onset of militancy. Credit: Ashfaq Yusufzai/IPS

Falcons are monogamous creatures with a slow reproduction rate, placing them in popular demand as rare trophies, Murad added. The female lays just two eggs annually; usually, only one chick survives and takes five years to reach adulthood.

Arab nationals use the birds – particularly the females — for falconry, especially for hunting houbara bustard in Pakistan and other countries.

“Dignitaries from Arab countries visit the KP and FATA to purchase the falcon of their choice from a market fed by hundreds of trappers,” Fareed Khan, a falcon dealer, told IPS.

Falcon trappers attach balls of nylon and feathers to the feet of smaller birds like kestrels, Laggar Falcons and white-eyed buzzard. Mistaking these contraptions for prey, larger falcons sink their talons into the “bait”, causing both birds to tumble to the ground and into the hands of the waiting trappers, Khan elaborated.

Sometimes, small birds like doves, pigeons and quails are placed as bait underneath nets on the ground. When the falcons swoop down on their prey they become entangled in the nets and are easily captured.

The large-scale trapping, hunting and dealing of falcons was in full swing when the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) declared the bird an endangered species in 2005, prompting the government to place a complete ban on issuance of licences to those who would interrupt the bird’s natural life.

Those licences had brought the government about 12,000 dollars annually.

Prior to the advent of terrorism, “hunters continued illegal poaching in KP and earned thousands of dollars from the sale of falcons to well-heeled Arabs”, Murad said.

“Now,” according to KP official Khalid Shah, “military activity, gunfire, the use of tanks and other kinds of warfare” have made FATA and the KP virtually too dangerous to enter.

For wildlife enthusiasts and environmentalists who have long fought against the relentless killing and capture of the birds, this is a bittersweet victory, as it comes at the expense of peace in Pakistan ’s tribal areas.

Birds still at risk

Wildlife officials, in “collaboration with the KP Forest Department, are working on habitat improvement for falcons to further encourage” population growth, Shah said.

The government is also working to implement its ban by imposing harsh penalties on those who violate the law.

“The government has issued over 450 challans (orders for payment of fines) in the last five years, bringing in revenue worth roughly 3,000 dollars,” Wildlife Department Spokesperson Kashifullah Shah told IPS.

In March alone, seven falcons have been confiscated and released. An additional 20 falcons were confiscated in January and February of 2013 and released into the wild, he said.

Kashifullah Shah says a shortage of staff and a dearth of adequate facilities have hampered efforts to bring about the desired results.

The population could be raised much more if stronger measures are taken, he stressed.

With a going rate of between one and ten million rupees (10,000 and 100,000 dollars), falcons are prized trophies, and neither militancy nor a government ban will be sufficient to keep hunters and trappers at bay forever.

“Only 450 field workers are not enough to stop illegal hunting and smuggling of falcons in the province, (especially) since each of the workers is required to monitor an area of 200 square kilometres on foot, while the trappers have (modern equipment) and vehicles.”

“We need to deploy more staff with vehicles in potential hunting areas where hundreds of trappers are active, like Swat, Peshawar and Dera Ismail Khan to conserve the species,” he said.

“We should also involve local communities by establishing village conservation committees to keep an eye on the hunters. This strategy has worked well in the past.”

This programme also helps scale up public awareness about the endangered creature and the importance of preserving its natural habitat.

(END)

The houbara bustard is an endangered bird, found in desert habitats of Pakistan’s Balochistan province. Credit: Houbara Foundation International, Pakistan.

By Zofeen Ebrahim
KARACHI, Dec 19 2012 (IPS)

Every year, between November and January, the Indus Flyway bears witness to a migration of an endangered bird species – the houbara bustard – from Central Asia to the deserts of Pakistan.

And every year, planeloads of Arab dignitaries follow suit, turning the desert habitats of Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan into a mini city of hunting ‘camps’, where, in the space of 10 days, they hunt down as many of the protected birds as possible.

This winter, incensed environmentalists and conservationists are wringing their hands in frustration to learn that none other than the highest authority in Pakistan, President Asif Ali Zardari, has invited the son of Qatar’s prime minister to hunt in the protected Kirthar National Park, as well as in the Thatta, Jamshoro and Badin districts in the Sindh province.

“This is quite unprecedented, the president breaking the law with such impunity,” Dr. Ejaz Ahmed of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)-Pakistan, told IPS.

Giving the president and other high level officials the benefit of the doubt, the environmentalist conceded, “It is possible that they may not be aware of the country’s wildlife acts or do not understand the importance of protected areas.”

Spread across 25,000 hectares just outside Karachi, the Kirthar National Park is the only one of its kind in the province and falls under the Sindh Wildlife Protection Ordinance of 1972, which bans hunting and threatens poachers with long prison terms and heavy fines.

This latest hunt has been organised for the Qatari VIP by Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry, and though no details are available, activists who have long protested the annual affair know what will transpire: the illegal hunting of houbara bustard.

Over the last 20 to 30 years, the wild population of the Asian Houbara has come under serious threat, mainly because of unregulated hunting, poaching and habitat loss as a result of human activity.

While locals are strictly prohibited from hunting, the ban is lifted – briefly and blatantly – to accommodate the fancies of Arab guests.

This year 30 special permits were issued to dignitaries belonging to the royal families of Saudi Arabia (two), the United Arab Emirates (12), Qatar (11) and Bahrain (five) to set up camps in 14 districts in three of the four provinces where the birds spend their winters.

“These royal guests are permitted to hunt for ten days, during which time they can hunt down a maximum of 100 birds each,” explained an official at the Sindh Wildlife Department (SWD), speaking to IPS under strict condition of anonymity.

Each dignitary comes with an entourage of over two-dozen of his own guests, along with a brigade of staff – from cooks and waiters to drivers and laundrymen.

They even bring their own vehicles and generators as well as all the “necessary” camp paraphernalia.

“They bring their bedding, crockery, carpets – you name it and they have it,” Muhammad Khalid, a Pakistani who served as a cook for a hunting party last year, told IPS. “Even in the otherwise parched desert, water was in plentiful supply (in their camps).”

An SWD official is assigned by the government to accompany each group, to ensure that the royals’ stay is hassle free, but also to unobtrusively note down violations of national and international wildlife codes.

According to the anonymous source, “Most overstay (their allotted time) and hunt down more than 100 birds.”

Dr. Ali Murtaza Dharejo, a zoologist, says weak implementation of legislation has brought the endangered bird to the brink of extinction.

“Very soon we will be left with nothing – no wildlife, no biodiversity,” lamented Dharejo. “We are destroying the natural habitats of the birds and the animals, there is no vegetation, fewer ponds and hardly any weeds left,” he said.

“Fewer birds are coming to winter here,” the SWD official confirmed, adding, “There is no scientific study to tell us if the numbers have dwindled or whether (the birds) have simply changed their routes. But I’d say (the absence of the birds) is very likely the result of decades of unregulated hunting and severe habitat degradation due to increased human activity.”

Arab kings and princes share these concerns, albeit for very different reasons: many realise that if conservation efforts are not taken seriously, it could mean an end to this ancient Bedouin sport.

Efforts are underway to ensure the survival of the species – but they may be inadequate to withstand the hunting fervour.

This year, the two Abu Dhabi breeding centres set up by the International Fund for Houbara Conservation (IFHC), a global organisation dedicated to restoring and preserving the endangered population, reported the presence of 13,000 new birds, bringing the total to more than 120,000 since the four centres, including two in Morocco, began work in 2006.

According to Brigadier Mukhtar Ahmed, heading the Houbara Foundation International in Pakistan, “Around 2,000 of those birds from the UAE will be released by early 2013. Before being brought to Pakistan, they will be harnessed with satellite transmitters and conventional radio collars to enable scientists to track their habitat preferences; the pattern of their migration; and the rate of survival after release.”

In a further bid to stem illegal hunting, the government here has also imposed a ban on the sale of falcons – also classified as an endangered and protected species – which are used to hunt the houbara bustard. But this, too, has been continuing under the table, according to Ahmed, former president of the Falcon Foundation International in Pakistan.

Earlier this month police seized 32 falcons from a shop in Karachi. These birds, particularly the females, fetch 1,000 to 10,000 dollars, the SWD officer told IPS, while a bustard only fetches between 100 and 150 dollars.

Because of the ban, Gulf royal families are issued permits to bring their own falcons in and out of the country.

“But what actually happens is that the old ones are left here and younger ones caught in Pakistan are transported out instead,” said Ahmed, adding that the swap is easy enough to make, given lax regulations.

A customs official speaking under condition of anonymity told IPS, “Customs and immigration officials are not in a position to question the goods they (the royal hunters) carry back. Those officers who have tried to stop them have been given a rough time later.”

(END)