Wednesday, Dec 03, 2003 Front Page | Southern States | Other
States | Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary | By Our
Staff Reporter Dr. Archibald, also the founder-director of the
International Centre for Crane Studies, has been working on the
cranes of India for some time. He attributed the decreasing
population of the Saurus variety to increased use of pesticides
and high-tension wires in their migratory path. "The migratory
birds are not allowed to cross the Indian border. Five thousand
or 6,000 birds are being shot at and captured in Pakistan when
they cross the route. The simple reason is to keep them as pets
or gift them to friends. This has added to the decline in their
population." He, however, denied that they were killed for meat.
Cranes were relatively easy to keep in captivity, but they
needed a lot of care. "The Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and
Natural History has a lot of challenges ahead. With migratory
cranes flying in large numbers to India from all over Asia,
there are many opportun