Himachal State Bird – Western Tragopan Faces Uncertain Future

Facing Extinction:Western Tragopan breeding program headed for disaster

Shimla: After spending crores of rupees on conservation breeding of Western Tragopan, a highly endangered Western Himalayan pheasant facing extinction, the program is but an apparent failure that the wild life officials and an overseas consultant refuse to acknowledge.

Reliable sources revealed that in March-April, 2010 nearly all of the 23 Western Tragopan’s in captivity at the specially made Saharan breeding center in Shimla district had bacterial infection and were being treated.

Eventually three adult females’ birds died, leaving behind a population of 11 males and 9 females.

The surviving birds laid 17 fertilized eggs of which only one hatched and that too the chick died within a week. Post-mortem findings of the dead birds including the chick has revealed bacterial (e-coli) infection.Read Full Story