Gujarat has a ‘stimulus' plan for loveless lesser floricans

Time of India

09-07-2025

This monsoon, conservation experts in the state are racing against time to save the critically endangered lesser florican, the world's smallest bustard. After witnessing a complete breeding failure last year, they are now deploying an unusual strategy involving female decoys to attract male birds.
At the Conservation Breeding Centre (CBC) in Velavadar National Park, 150km from Ahmedabad, the wildlife officials are preparing cotton-stuffed cloth effigies treated with female scent to collect semen from male birds, a technique borrowed from houbara bustard breeding programmes in the UAE.
The desperate measure comes after an unprecedented courtship crisis last monsoon — while the males put up a stellar show, the females not only rejected their advances but also attacked them.
With fewer than 900 lesser floricans remaining across India, according to the State of India's Birds 2023 report, the sexual standoff halts reproduction and pushes the lesser floricans further towards extinction.
Since 2020, when the CBC was set up for the lesser floricans, conservationists have salvaged eggs at risk from rainwater ingress, agricultural activity and predators, successfully hatching 16 chicks through artificial incubation.
Currently, 12 have reached adulthood: six males and six females. But successful hatching means nothing if the birds won't breed.
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"The males did everything right last season," says Dr Yash Baraiya, the centre's veterinary doctor. "We watched them transform and perform their elaborate courtship dances, but the females became aggressive instead of receptive. They attacked the males and prevented any mating attempts."
This monsoon, determined not to witness another failure, the officials have crafted a clever decoy: a cotton-stuffed cloth effigy resembling a female, with wood used as needed for structure. Painted to look lifelike and adorned with real feathers, the effigy is treated with authentic female scent collected from the field. The technique, successfully tested on houbara bustards in the UAE, addresses the inexplicable hostility of the females by offering males 'a receptive partner', thus allowing officials to collect semen.
However, the challenge is immense. "The females are laying unfertilized eggs, which confirms their reproductive readiness. Collecting semen from the timid male birds, though, is delicate work. Any disturbance will cause them to shut down completely. But if we can successfully collect semen, we can artificially inseminate the females during their fertile window," Baraiya adds.
The team is also looking to Rajasthan for guidance.
"Rajasthan has achieved remarkable success with artificial insemination in the Great Indian Bustard," says Nilesh Joshi, assistant conservator of forests at Velavadar National Park. "We have requested the Gujarat govt to arrange for our veterinary team to visit the Sudasri Breeding Centre in Jaisalmer to learn their techniques, which could be adapted for our florican breeding programme.
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However, forest officials are not relying on artificial methods alone. They are also planning to introduce wild lesser florican pairs to breed with the captive population, adjusting pairings based on the birds' interactions. The centre has created a natural forest-like environment using marvel grass, which the birds prefer for nesting. Artificial shelters provide protected nesting areas, while 360-degree cameras monitor the birds continuously for signs of illness or injury.
The lesser florican's future now depends on blending the artificial with the authentic, whatever measures are necessary to ensure their survival.