Dubai: His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has set free 170 Asian captive-bred Houbara bustards at the Al Maha desert conservatory in Dubai.
The release was in line with strategy of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan to increase the number of houbaras and re-locating them in the UAE and the Arabian peninsula, in addition to the interest of Shaikh Mohammad in important environment issues.
Shaikh Mohammad, who was accompanied by Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, listened to the presentation by Mohammad Salih Al Baidani, Director-General of the Fund, regarding the preservation and breeding of the houbara bustards.
The birds were bred at the National Avian Research Centre (NARC) of the International Fund for Bustards' Conservation.
Al Baidani briefed about the Al Maha conservatory and the qualities that make it an ideal location for preserving endangered species.
Al Baidani also explained the methods used in breeding the birds and the technology used in tracking them to relocate them in the wild through transmitters. As many as 20 birds in the group have been fitted with transmitters. The method allows tracers to observe the life of these birds after their return to the wild through satellites. The new technology also investigates the bird's ability to survive in the open.
The information received will also assist in evaluating the success of the whole operation in releasing the birds and making use of the accumulated data in preparing new programmes, said Al Baidani.
The programme entails the release of 882 Asian bustards in various locations around Abu Dhabi and Dubai, to re-locate these birds and prepare them for a desert life in the UAE, which is considered a historical station on the map of the bird's locations.
