Going the extra mile to protect ‘winged guests’ in world’s falcon capital

Eastern Mirror Desk Dimapur, Nov. 14: Nagaland earned global notoriety in 2012 after villagers hunted thousands of Amur Falcons, a small raptor of the falcon family that roost by the Doyang reservoir in Wokha every year, but the picture has changed since with this hunting ground being transformed into a safe refuge for the beautiful bird over the years and the hunters becoming conservationists. To keep up the spirit of protecting this ‘winged guests’ and wildlife in the area, a Wokha-based non profit organisation (NGO) called Natural Nagas recently organised the Amur Falcon Conservation Week. Amur Falcon starts visiting Wokha district of Nagaland in October but the actual migration takes place in the first week of November. Efforts of the local community to protect the bird paid off with international scientists declaring Doyang as one of the biggest congregations of nearly one million Amur Falcon and declaring the state as the 'Falcon capital of the world.’ Natural Nagas, which was founded by Steve Odyuo with an aim to promote environmental conservation and highlight the natural beauty and grandeur of the Naga-inhabited areas, spearheaded Amur Falcon Conservation week at Doyang in Wokha which was observed from Nov. 8 to 10^th after receiving the green signal from the department of Tourism on Nov. 4. The people, including stakeholders living in the area were invited to the event to learn about wildlife conservation. “Although the event received the green signal three days before the designated date and the organisers were confused and left in the lurch but because of wide publicity on social media, the event was quite successfully,” Odyuo told Eastern Mirror. Odyuo along with Mhathung Yanthan, advisor to department of Horticulture, came up with the idea of organising the event to promote eco tourism through conservation. Odyuo told this newspaper that the concept of the event was conceived five months ago during a discussion with legislator Yanthan and the idea was proposed to the chief minister of the state Neiphiu Rio who welcomed it and later approved by the cabinet. But it was not a cake walk as preparation was initially lukewarm due to communication gap and funding issue too cropped up though it was done by the state government. He said that Deputy Chief Minister Y Patton provided financial help but the organisers still had to chip in to ensure that the event turned out to be as projected. He added that the event was not just on Amur Falcon but on wildlife conservation; to create tourism prospect in Doyang and alterative source of livelihood for the community. Odyuo's endeavour to promote sustainable conservation and protection of nature, especially in the tribal and the indigenous-inhabited areas of the state started in 2013 when he roped in Wildlife Trust and involved the community of Pangti-Aasha-Sungro villages under Wokha district with Natural Nagas and signed a tripartite memorandum of understanding for Rapid Action Programme (RAP) to safeguard nature and create awareness. Another group that was involved in the Amur Falcon Conservation week was the Explore Morashen Eco Tourism Association (E-Meta), a group from Riphyim village in Wokha district. E-Meta, which also means 'Our land' in Lotha dialect, partnered with the Nagaland Association for Adventure Mountaineering and Education (NAAME) in providing recreational activities like tents, zipline, zorbing and boating adventure during the event. A member from the group told Eastern Mirror that the exposure programme was limited as it failed to draw people from the neighbouring states or for that matter from other districts of the state, as most of the crowd were invitees and the locals which could be because of the delay in getting the green signal for the event. However, the group is optimistic that the event will be continued in the future even without the support of the government, terming the setback experienced this year as an “eye-opener.” Denny Jongdao Basumatary from Udalguri in Assam, a bike rider of 'Bulls of Assam' group who was in Doyang to witness the festival, was thrilled to witness the roosting of Amur Falcon and the adventure activities set up by the organisers.  However, he said that he came to know about the event through his friend. "The publicity should be beyond locals and it was unexpected that no promotion was done for the festival which could have attracted visitors from beyond the state,” lamented Basumatary.