A small, heavy-bodied family of grassland birds, and among the most endangered in India. Four species are on the Indian list, and every one of them depends on open, undisturbed grassland — exactly the habitat that has shrunk fastest across the subcontinent. The Great Indian Bustard is now down to a few dozen birds in the wild, most of them in Rajasthan and Karnataka; the Lesser Florican, smaller and far more widely scattered, is best known for the male's jumping display, straight up out of the grass and back down, repeated through the monsoon breeding season.
4Species in India
2Photographed
Grassland, undisturbedWhere to look
MonsoonWhen the florican displays
Critically EndangeredStatus of the flagship species
The species
Great Indian Bustard
Ardeotis nigriceps6 frames
Status
Resident, non-migratory; now restricted to a handful of fragmented populations
Range
Formerly across the grasslands of western and central India; today almost entirely confined to the Thar in Rajasthan, with a much smaller population in Karnataka
Habitat
Open, undisturbed grassland and semi-arid scrub, avoiding tall vegetation and disturbance
IUCN
Critically Endangered
One of the heaviest flying birds in the world, standing tall on long pale legs with a dark cap set off against a pale neck and head, and a body scaled and spotted brown above. It walks upright through grass with a slow, deliberate gait and is more often seen as a head and neck above the grassline than as a full bird in the open. The population has collapsed over the past few decades, driven by habitat loss and collisions with power lines across its range — it is now one of the rarest birds in India, and sightings anywhere outside its core range are notable.
FM0005
Dec 2017Rollapadu Wildlife Sanctuary, Kurnool, Andhra PradeshNeck raised above grass, head turned back.
Breeding visitor to much of its range through the monsoon, dispersing afterward; some populations resident
Range
Scattered across grassland pockets of western, central and peninsular India, with strongholds in Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh
Habitat
Tall monsoon grassland and adjoining scrub or cultivation, needing cover high enough to conceal the bird between display jumps
IUCN
Endangered
The smallest of the Indian bustards, and the one most likely to be seen in the open — briefly. In the breeding season the male performs a jumping display, springing vertically out of the grass with the black head plumes fanned and the white wing patches flashing, then dropping straight back down, repeated every so often through the day to advertise the territory to females. Outside a jump the bird is almost impossible to pick out, a dark head occasionally showing above the grass and then gone.
FM0011
Sep 2018Rollapadu Wildlife Sanctuary, Kurnool, Andhra PradeshMale mid-display, four jumps of the same sequence.
