Southern States - Andhra Pradesh   

Community action to curb poaching of migratory birds

By G. V. Prasada Sarma

TELI NEELAPURAM (Srikakulam dt.) Dec. 9. Community-based action to make this remote village, a haven for migratory birds, more hospitable and help check poaching is on the cards. The idea is to involve villagers and motivate the younger generation become a part of conservation efforts that will go a long way in making it a better place for birds.

For generations at Teli Neelapuram, about 70 km from the district headquarters of Srikakulam, the pelicans and the painted storks have been beloved annual guests that have become a part of their lives come October. Till March, the birds build their nests, lay eggs, hatch them, bring up their young ones and fly off, only to keep their tryst with the village next winter. Villagers are used to the winged visitors that have made the tamarind and babul trees and the bamboo clumps their home, and the large number of people who come to have a look at them. The Forest Department has a guesthouse and a watch tower to see the birds closely.

About three decades ago, a fire accident occurred in the village. The migratory birds hovered above it and some perished in the fire, but did not stop coming. The birds had once gone to Viswanathapuram, a nearby village and nested on the tamarind trees. Villagers began targeting them probably because the birds started picking fish from the Dali tank. The birds never went to that village again.

Even as Teli Neelapuram plays a perfect host to the birds, the nearby water bodies and the vast expanse of the Kakarapalli swamp from which the parent birds bring fish has become a happy hunting ground for poachers. Some of the poachers are professionals, who swiftly spread a net over the birds and catch them. There are others who simply lay a net beneath the water and catch hold of the unsuspecting prey, according to Pradeep Kumar Nath, founder-president of the Visakha Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (VSPCA), who has been visiting the village for three years now. Killing of the birds is an offence under Schedule (1) of the Wildlife Act of 1972.

The two watchmen of the Forest Department say it is difficult for them to catch the poachers who belong to the more than dozen villages surrounding the Kakarapalli swamp, about 7,500 acres in extent. A handful from these villages indulge in poaching regularly and any effort to nab them by the two results in hostile reaction from the entire village, says S. Dalapa Reddy, one of the watchmen. Not a single case was booked in recent years against the poachers, he said.

The VSPCA has prepared a project report based on the experience of Kokkare in Bellur of Karnataka in the conservation of pelicans and after studying the village for three years. Mr Nath says a multi-pronged approach with the Forest Department, NGOs and villagers working in tandem will improve affairs. A village-level committee would be formed with the sarpanch and other elders and also pamphlets and leaflets would be distributed about conservation and against poaching. The youth will be motivated to be a part of it. The coming together of villagers would send a strong message to poachers, he feels. Also the number of watchmen should be increased to four and made full-time, besides giving them wildlife kits.

The watchmen also need training on how to handle the young ones when they fall off the trees and transport them to the zoo, Mr Nath says, as also the dos and don'ts as a large number of picnickers visit the village during `karteekam'. The sarpanch of Teli Neelapuram, G. Duryodhana, who wants it to be developed as a tourist destination, is forthcoming.

Another area of concern is the fall in the number of birds this season. The watchmen keep count of the nests and arrive at the number of birds. This year the number of nests, till the last week of November, is put at a total of 260 (135 for pelicans and 125 for painted storks). Each net accounts for two birds. The number of birds is expected to touch 800. However, if the numbers for the previous two years is any indication, it appears to be too optimistic. In 2001, the number of birds counted was 626 and in 2000 it was 634.

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