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Hoolock gibbons are completely arboreal and the forest canopy is their home. They have little to do with the forest floor. They swing from tree to tree searching for food and conducting their social lives surviving entirely among the treetops. But these individuals have almost no trees left to swing between. To get beyond one group of trees they have to climb down to the ground and make an unnatural and perilous dash to the next paltry lot of trees. This trek on the ground is fraught with danger for them as stray dogs routinely attack them and local kids wait to catch them and take them away in baskets. There are no escape routes left; all linking trees have been felled leaving no continual wooded stretch that can lead them back safely to a forested area. The gibbons are hopelessly marooned on this treeless island.
Our vet Abhijit Bawal is already at the site, monitoring the gibbons and ensuring their immediate safety and well being. Meanwhile the translocation logistics are being planned and necessary permissions from the forest department are being processed. This operation will require emergency funding for hiring personnel for capture, fabricating cages, food and medicine, vehicles for transportation and the many other supplies essential to accomplish this task. Hoolock gibbon (Bunopithecus hoolock) is an endangered species listed in the Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act (1972). Habitat loss, hunting and illegal trade threaten its survival. Habitat fragmentation has forced many gibbons in Assam to live in isolation, at times without a mate. As we launch into this mission, we are reaching out to supporters, to let you know about this emergency so that you can help us save as many of these gibbons as possible. I’ll share more details with you on the rescue later in a few days. Please donate through http://www.wti.org.in/donate and also forward this mail to people who you think would like to support the project. Regards, Radhika Bhagat (radhika@wti.org.in) |
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: : About Wildlife Trust of India : :
It was formed in November 1998, in response to the rapidly deteriorating condition of the country’s wildlife, with only three staff members. In 2008, WTI completed its tenth year with a team of over 100 full-time professionals and consultants, in addition to volunteers from all walks of life. The core team includes scientists, field biologists, conservation managers, veterinarians, lawyers, finance, business management and communication specialists, who operate diverse conservation projects across India. Within just over a decade, WTI has made significant innovative and pioneering contributions in wildlife conservation, making it one of India’s key wildlife NGOs. The principal concerns of WTI include crisis management and provision of quick, efficient aid to individuals, species or habitats that require it the most. In the longer term it hopes to achieve, through proactive reforms, an atmosphere conducive to conserving India’s wildlife and its habitat. WTI is a registered charity in India (under Section 12A of the Income Tax Act, 1961) and is mandated by its Board of Trustees to ensure that 85 % of all specified donor monies go to the field. Visit our website http://www.wti.org.in |
10 families of Hoolock gibbons (each family comprising of about 4 individuals), once happy in their lush forest, are now helplessly stranded amidst a handful of isolated trees in Arunachal Pradesh. Their habitat has been bulldozed away to make way for human development leaving a cluster of solitary trees standing.
WTI’s Executive Director, Mr. Vivek Menon himself visited the site and said that he had never seen anything like it. The stranded gibbons can be helped only by a special rescue mission of translocating them to a suitable habitat nearby.
Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), is a non-profit conservation organisation, committed to urgent action that works towards the protection of India’s wildlife. Its mission is to conserve nature, especially endangered species and threatened habitats, in partnership with communities and governments.