STATUS, DISTRIBUTION AND THREATS TO HOUBARA BUSTARD (CHLAMYDOTIS UNDULATA MACQUEENI) IN SOUTHERN BELT OF KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA PAKISTAN

Abstract

Houbara Bustard lives in large areas of remote desert in southern belt of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The four selected areas for study, D.I.Khan, Lakki marwat, Bannu and Tank are frequently large and are located in remote areas that are far from each other. The method of the study was consisting of two parts the literature review and field survey. The first step was literature review which was completed and data and credentials were collected. In the second phase the local people, hunters and poachers were interviewed. Among these four habitats, D.I.Khan held the largest number of birds 283, Tank 114, Lakki marwat 68 and Bannu 23. D.I.Khan is an important habitat for the Houbara bustard, sustaining a good reproduction population every year, successfully enough to support increasing numbers. The major causes of the decreased population of Houbara in recent years are habitat loss by grazing, habitat changes to agricultural lands, hunting and trapping to export live birds illegally to Arab countries. The results indicate that the number of houbara bustard is going to decrease. The habitat destruction and illegal hunting are the main reasons of rapid decrease in their number. If no conservation programs are started then this bird will be a danger of extinction. Key words: Houbara bustard, Status, Distribution, Threats.