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Breeding the Houbara Bustard in the United Arab Emirates

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Breeding the Houbara Bustard in the United Arab Emirates An American Aviculturist Abroad Reports on Breeding The Houbara Bustard in the United Arab Emirates by Bryant Tarr, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates t is 4:25 A.M. as I wake to the ancient Falconry and Houbara ecologicaUy sustainable use of wildlife. I sounds of Islam. The tonal qualities Falconry (the pursuit of wild quarry Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of of the caU to prayer echoing from the with a trained bird of prey) has a long Abu Dhabi, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa nearby mosque have not changed for and rich history in Arabia. The hunting bin Zayed AI Nahyan, brought NARC into fifteen hundred years. This ritual, which partner of choice for falconers here existence through Royal Decree in takes place at regular intervals through­ has always been the rugged and beau­ September 1989. While NARC's overaU out the day, lends a certain ambience tiful Saker Falcon, and the favored goals include gaining a broader eco­ and an unmistakable rhythm to life quarry the Houbara Bustard (although logical understanding of the UAE's here in Arabia. My neighborhood's desert hares and Stone Curlews are wildlife in general, and birds in particular, Mosque, like most today, features a hunted with falcons as welD. For tens one.of NARC's primary objectives is to modern amplification system. As luck of centuries a stable and sustainable rela­ increase the number of Houbara win­ would have it, this one has speakers tionship existed between falconers and tering within the Emirate ofAbu Dhabi. aimed directly at my bedroom win­ the Houbara wintering here. Bringing dow, lending an unmistakable decibel The motivation for this objective is game to the bag with a falcon is no easy level to life here as weU. I used to clearly to make more Houbara available task. For this reason over-hunting by fal­ wake to the caUs of cranes as an avi­ in the future for hunting by falconry. But culturist at the International Crane conry had never been a concern, least the greater scientific understand of Foundation (ICF) in Baraboo, Wisconsin. of all for the wary Houbara which is well Houbara population ecology and cap­ I am still an aviculturist, but now at the adapted to escaping a falcon's attack. tive breeding/release techniques that are National Avian Research Center (NARC) Since the relatively recent flood of a prerequisite for success will, in the long in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The wealth from oil, however, falconers run, benefit the species as a whole. There sweet sound of cranes is just a mem­ from Arab countries have been able to are many facets to the chaUenge which ory, five degrees below zero is just a pursue their passion for falconry with will incorporate programs such as wild memory too, and on days when the greatly improved efficiency. Suffice it bird studies, habitat improvements, mercury tops out here at 120° F., even to say that one can catch many more and establishment of protected areas...but a fantasy. Houbara with the benefit of dozens the aspect of most interest to Watchbird I am here largely because the Houbara of falcons, fuU-time bird trainers, cus­ readers is, of course, captive breeding. Bustard Chlamydotis undulata is not. tomized aU-terrain hunting vehicles, At least not in the same numbers that GPS navigational equipment, trackers to occurred in the past. Houbara Bustards find game, telemetry to find lost falcons, are taxonomic cousins to the cranes sateUite telephones to link them aU Captivity Presents Unique (both are Gruiformes) and exist as together, and months of free time to Challenges three distinct subspecies: C. u. undu­ spend "hawking", than one can with a Breeding Houbara Bustards in cap­ lata in North Africa, C. u. macqueeni in couple of falcons and a trusty camel. Add tivity and releasing them to the wild is Asia, and C. u. Juerventurae in the modern firearms to this equation, along a fairly straightforward approach to Canary Islands. This shy and some­ with widespread habitat degradation, and the task at hand, and like most things what bizarre bird of steppes and deserts it is no surprise that Houbara popula­ avicultural, it is easier said than done! might go largely unnoticed if it were not tions have suffered a decline and that NARC inherited about 150 Houbara of such great significance to the falconers continued over-exploitation of Houbara from captive stocks already held in of Arabia. NARC is concentrating on is now a concern. the UAE. The majority ofthese birds were breeding the macqueeni subspecies wild-caught by falcons and recovered as part of an overaU strategy to bolster alive. These were kept for later use to the wild population of this bird that win­ The National train more inexperienced falcons, a ters in the Emirates, while continuing to Avian Research Center common practice in this region. promote its sustainable use as the The National Avian Research Center Unfortunately the birds had been kept favored quarry for falconers. is an organization dedicated to the in substandard conditions for long afa wATeHBIRD 57 of the problems raised by the lek type mating system. The key to their success lies in having hand-reared human­ imprinted breeding stock. As with many species bred in captivity, these birds will often direct their sexual attention to their human keepers. Imprinted males dis­ play for humans but can easily be coaxed to mate with a dummy female Houbara and the semen produced can be collected and inseminated into real females prior to egg laying. When I vis­ ited the Center in March 1995, to study artificial insemination techniques, there were 100 displaying male Houbara of two different subspecies simultane­ ously doing their hilarious jig. A dis­ playing male Houbara is indeed a Sight to behold, but 100 of them is beyond NARC aViculturist, Nigel jarrett, releasing wild-caught adult male Houbara Bustard in descriptionl Kazakhstan, May, 1995, after being fttted with satellite transmitter by NARC Ecology NARC aviculturists still mainly face the Department stafffor migration study. challenges posed by encouraging nat­ ural breeding, as most of our stock periocis of time, some were in poor phys­ sary task is eventually completed and are wild-caught and not suitable for AI. ical condition, and most were terri­ genetic material are passed on to the next We have done our utmost to prOVide fied of people. There were no records generation in a 2-4 egg clutch. Eggs are favorable conditions for these highly­ kept for any of these birds. To pro­ subsequently incubated, and the result­ strung birds and still have hopes of pro­ fessional aviculturists the situation was ing chicks reared, by the female alone. duction from them, even if limited. totally unacceptable and its legacy ?till This lek-like mating system presents Many different combinations of pen presents many difficulties. How old some interesting difficulties when sizes and sex ratios are being tested to are these birds' Where do they come applied to captive birds. For example, discover what set of conditions will from' Are they related? Before any will these birds form pairs if given the inspire breeding in these difficult birds. thoughts of large-scale breeding could opportunity' If not pairs, then what is Some groups of birds have access to begin the birds needed to be individ­ the correct sex-ratio for a group of shelter, some do not, some have dense ually marked, sexed. examined by vet­ captive Houbara' How big should their vegetation in the pens, some have erinarians, moved to better facilities, and pens be' How big should the groups in sparse vegetation, some even have air­ assessed as potential breeding stock. each pen be? Should there be mounds conditioned indoor/outdoor pens Cit In the Wild, Houbara breed on open for males to display on? If there is is very hot here, with temperatures steppes and utilize a type of lek mating more than one male/female in a pen will well over 1000 F. being the norm by mid­ system a bit like an expanded version one dominate the other' Will one stim­ late spring). Statistics from the NWRC of our prairie grouse species. Males ulate the other? Should you give females at Taif are not encouraging with regard occupy a displaying area, make a spec­ a choice of more than one male-and if to natural breeding of Houbara caught tacle of themselves (as only males can so, how do you do that and keep as wild adults-they have found that do) to declare themselves to other males separated' Inevitably these ques­ males will display, but only one such males anc:llor to attract females. In most tions lead to still more questions... if female has ever laid an egg in captiv­ avian lek systems males gather at a you think you know the answers please ity there. specific location (display grounds) and pick up the phone and call me, we are With this bit of reality in mind, NARC the female selects a mate, copulates with still working it out' has begun a joint project with the him, and continues on her way having NARC is not the only institution to Institute of Zoology in Kazakhstan to no further need of the male. With attempt to breed Houbara in captivity. study wild Houbara. as well as collect Houbara, displaying males are dis­ Most notably, The National Wildlife a limited number of eggs (under the persed over many kilometers and when Research Center (NWRC) near Taif, authority of local and CITES pennits) for they see a female in their area they chase Saudi Arabia, has done very well with the establishment of hand-reared founder her and attempt to copulate (she either Houbara and provides at least partial breeding stock.
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