[Posted on behalf of Ian Barber, RSPB's Senior Partner Development Officer - Asia]
Local people told us the direct road was impassable so we were forced to take the alternative rough and dusty road which went along two sides of a triangle to get to the Koshi Daira in Bihar, India. But the 3.5 hour journey was worth it when we arrived at the huge Peepal tree overhanging the grounds of the local school. The Peepal is a “sacred fig” species whose medicinal leaves are known to be a good laxative.
We knew we would find a nest there but were not expecting to find 23 in one tree! I was accompanying Arvind Mishra of the Mandar Nature Club and State Co-ordinator for the Indian Bird Conservation Network in Bihar. Arvind is a human dynamo working tirelessly for birds in his State and has a particular passion for the Greater Adjutant. There are probably not more than about 1,200 of these Endangered birds left in the world and until 2006 were only know to breed in two places, Assam in NE India and Cambodia. That was until Arvind and his team discovered them breeding in Bihar.
The bird's name comes from its stiff military gait when walking and Arvind has developed a network of adjutants (“assistants to the commander”) to help him monitor the birds and the results have been stunning. After finding 23 nests in 2006 Arvind and his team have travelled throughout the area in search of this giant of a bird. Its gangly legs enable it to stand up to 1.5 m tall. It has a 2.5 m wingspan and a massive wedge-shaped bill, protruding from its bald head. To complete the look it has a bright orange neck and flabby pouch during the breeding season. A distinctive bird if ever there was one!
The discovery of a new breeding area was exciting news and has given new hope for the birds survival as their numbers are declining in the other breeding areas. Arvind set about raising awareness of the bird within the local communities appealing to their religious nature by likening the bird to the huge bird or “bada garuda” that bears the Hindu God `Lord Vishu' on his journeys. He also ensured they protect the large trees they build their nests in and the wetlands that use for feeding. He has even successfully managed to have the alignment of the new tarmac road changed to avoid the removal of any large trees although the increase in traffic may lead to some future disturbance.
Working with his local team he makes several visits during the breeding season to monitor nest numbers and chicks and since 2006 the number of nests have steadily grown reaching 55 in 2011. Last year however, they suffered a set back recording only 38 nests for no obvious reason and Arvind was fearful they numbers would decline as they are in Assam and Cambodia. But once we reached the Sacred Fig tree by the school last week he was reassured and for the next 4 hrs we went from village to village counting known nests and hearing of new ones from local people. The result was 63 nests in this area alone and with another 12 known from a neighbouring area this year has produced a record number of 75 nests, almost double last year's effort.
To complement his work with local communities and Govt Officials Arvind has built up a good rapport with the media such that during my visit he arranged several newspaper and TV interviews. It is with some degree of satisfaction that we shared the front page of the Hindustan Times with another Indian legend, Sachin Tendulkar, the day after he retired from international cricket. Arvind on the other hand has no intention of retiring just yet and will be continuing his great work in the State of Bihar for years to come. This year a grant from the RSPB will help him to search for nests in other areas and to establish rescue facilities for chicks that occasionally fall out of the nest. This will include erecting nets at the base of trees and training a local vet to treat any injured birds.