Emirates Center for Wildlife Propagation: A successful example of sustainable management of Houbara Bustard population

Since it was established in 1995, the Center has been working to ensure that the Houbara Bustard, the favored target species for Arabian falconry, is protected for future generations as wild houbara populations are crashing as a result of over-hunting and poaching.

The ECWP will be exhibiting its successful example at the Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition from October 24-27, 2007 at the Abu Dhabi International Exhibition Center, which is held under the patronage of H.H Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of Emirates Falconers' Club.

Although the Center is relatively new, it has already achieved noteworthy progress in most of its programmes. It has seen its strategy mature and develop into a coherent integrated project. It embodies a successful example of how to possibly reach a sustainable management of houbara bustard populations.

"The Center in Morocco serves as a lasting contribution to the global strategy for houbara conservation. The future of the Houbara in the wild lies in the balance. Since a drastic reduction of the hunting and poaching bag is difficult to achieve and enforce, captive breeding has been seen as the solution," said H.E Mohammed Al Bowardi, Secretary General of Abu Dhabi Executive Council and Deputy Chairman of Emirates Falconers' Club.

The Center has achieved a high level of expertise in the artificial reproduction of houbara bustard and now annual production has regularly increased from 429 chicks in the year 2000 to 8,146 chicks in the year 2007. A final objective has been set to produce 5,000 birds yearly, starting from 2008.

In 2005, a new breeding station was set up in Injeel, Morocco, which will be capable to breed 10,000 chicks yearly by 2014. Moreover, the number of houbara released so far has risen from 2 birds in 1998 to 5,800 birds in 2007. The total houbara released has reached 11,284 since 1995.

Abu Dhabi has set a target to produce 22,000 houbara yearly so ECWP will be joining hands with Abu Dhabi's National Avian Research Center to achieve this strategic target. It will be done by producing 8,146 houbara in the coming year.