Project Info
Project Description
White-winged duck (Asarcornis scutulata), also known as “Deo hanh” in Assamese, was once widely distributed in Northeast India and Southeast Asia. As per the assessment of BirdLife International in 2016, this species has been categorized as ‘endangered’ in the IUCN Red List due to the small and fragmented population (c. 1000 mature individuals). The states of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh alone harbour about 50% of its global population with an estimate of c. 450 individuals. Although, Arunachal Pradesh has a suitable environment for the white-winged duck (WWD), still the status of the bird in the state is not known beyond Pakke Tiger Reserve and Namdapha National Park. The rapid and continuing decline of its population is majorly due to the loss/disturbance of forested wetlands in the distribution range resulting in habitat destruction.
According to the latest studies conducted in the early 1990s, 21 protected areas were known to support its population globally. The Dibru-Saikhowa National Park and Dihing-Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary were established specifically to conserve the species, the State Bird of Assam. Despite these efforts, the white-winged duck experts and birdwatchers have observed a concerning decline in their numbers. A concerted effort across its entire distribution range, particularly in India, remains insufficient, largely due to a lack of updated information and a synchronous concerted effort.
Major Threats
- destruction, degradation and disturbance of wetlands and pristine rainforests
- loss of nesting habitats—swampy areas with primary forests and large trees;
- direct threats of bird and egg poaching.
Lack of knowledge about their population status and site-specific conservation requirements are the major bottlenecks in its conservation and actions for recovery. This project aims to bridge the information gap, and outline and execute a long-term recovery plan in collaboration with the forest department, local stakeholders, and experts.
To begin with, ground surveys will be conducted to address the information gap regarding the species and its habitat. Identifying threats and specific drivers of these threats would form the basis of the species recovery planning for Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. The next phase would target the implementation of recovery measures and monitoring changes across both states.
The long-term objective of the project is to recover the population of the white-winged duck by working towards stabilizing and eventually increasing the number and sites of occurrence of the species in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. The project was initially technically supported by experts of international repute and was funded by ONGC.
PARTNERS: Department of Environment & Forests, Government of Assam, Department of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Arunachal Pradesh
PROJECT LEAD: Aftab Ahmed
