Desert National Park in Jaisalmer

Coming to the last leg of the Jaisalmer series, ‘Footlooseinme’ would like to end this with the final post on the amazing Desert National Park. Desert National Park showcases a fragile Desert ecosystem with nearly half of the park covered with fixed sand dunes and the topography merging with jagged rock form and salt bottom lakes. These harsh soil and weather conditions prove to be a haven for many plant and animal species. They in turn make this Desert National Park and the surrounding area a heaven for bird and animal lovers like us. I planned to publish this special post on my ‘Blog-versary’ and here it is.

Being very open about our preferences, we were mainly in the Desert National Park for the ‘Godavans’ aka the Great Indian Bustard (GIB.) While sightings of other raptors would be an additional bonus. Keeping all these in mind we planned our safari with a birding guide whose reference was given to us by a senior birder whom we met while birding in Old Magazine House near Dandeli. (Read my previous post on birding in Dandeli.)

GIB was the first contender for being the National Bird of India during the selection process in 1960. It lost its position to Indian Peacock with one possible reason for being misspelt. Once these large birds used to roam, forage and breed in good numbers all around the dry plains of India. Sadly, only a few (about 150) are left today. Arid to semi-arid grassland and open country with thorn scrub are the ideal habitats for these birds. The main reasons for their current critically endangered status are hunting and habitat loss.

Hunting was the initial reason for the reduction in their numbers in the past. In recent years habitat loss with infrastructure development and expansion of agricultural land made their existence even more challenging. A conservation project named ‘Project Great Indian Bustard’ was introduced by the Rajasthan Government on World Environment Day 2013. Under this project, conservation activities included identifying and fencing GIB breeding grounds in existing protected areas, radio-tagging a few birds and incubating the eggs artificially to ensure the survival of the chicks.

When so much for the GIB, (that too the best contender for the category of being the National Bird of India) how could we not try our luck to see them in the wild? Yes, we did try our luck in Kutch Bustard Sanctuary in Naliya but were highly disappointed. (Read my post on Kutch.) Presently Rajasthan has the largest number of all that remains and the Desert National Park is their home. How can we miss this opportunity when we are so close?

Desert National Park being the only place with the maximum number of the remaining GIB was definitely our primary reason but the other resident and migratory raptors too lured us to this place. So with our young yet experienced local birding guide accompanied by his experienced cousin (who drove us through this rough and rugged terrain), we went for a half day and another full-day safari to the Desert National Park and surrounding. 

Even though our main target in the Desert National Park was the GIB we were open to seeing anything that came our way and thus our amazing bird-watching trip began. We were welcomed by the Common Kestrel. Then the gates for the birding opened up. This trip was our lifer for every species we sighted. Meanwhile, we could experience the actual desert terrain and see the people who live an isolated life within this desert. They are the animal rearers who live a nomadic life building makeshift huts. Here they live with their families and their herd. 

I was in great awe to see the difficult lifestyle they endured. They lived a life without electricity, without running water or even a regular supply of drinking water. Our guide thus brought us to his father’s place for a tea break. They laid the ‘Charpai’ or the local cot and for our comfort covered it with a vibrant cover. The sooner they prepared the cot outside their hut, a kid from the herd came running and jumped up on the cot to feel the comfort of the velvety cover laid on it. We had a good time with the baby goat and the beautiful family members of the household.

Then we were again on the harsh desert landscape searching for the GIB. We did come across many other avian species on the way but no sight of the much-expected Godawan. We did finally see a pair of GIB on the last leg of our safari on the final day and this made our trip completely successful. I rest my Jaisalmer series here and also end the post on the Dessert National Park and let the picture of the birds speak of themselves.