Welcome!

With a maximum weight of 46 lbs (21 kg), the Great Bustard is one of the world's heaviest flying birds. Its preferred habitat in Central Asia is farmed fields close to human settlements. Yet due to the Great Bustard's wary nature, people living adjacent to these captivating birds are often unaware of their existence.

The range of this magnificent species once stretched across the steppes of Eurasia from Manchuria to Portugal. Now the Great Bustard is endangered or extinct across much of that area.

Our project, begun in 2006, is the largest research and outreach effort on Central Asian Great Bustards thus far. We are expanding scientific knowledge of poorly understood populations of the Great Bustard in remote Central Asia with an emphasis on gathering information with concrete conservation implications. We engage local people in the research process and promote awareness of the species in local communities, especially through programs focused on schoolchildren.

Recent News

Half-way home

The bustards we are monitoring have made it to the Bayanur oasis in Inner Mongolia - half-way from their wintering site in Chinato their breeding grounds in northern Mongolia April 2012

 

Support for Satellite Transmissions

We're grateful to a donor via the Great Bustard Group for financial support which allows us to continue receiving data from transmitters attached to wild Great Bustards. Fees are incurred as data passes through the satellite network. April 2012

 

Sharing Research Findings

Over the winter months we have been sharing our research findings with the conservation community, at such venues as The Wildlife Society annual meeting, Student Conference on Conservation Science, MTI's Avian and Marine Tracking Conference, and Rutgers' Mongolian Ecological Research Symposium. March 2012

 

Bustards in Winter

Master's student U. Tovshin is embarking on an adventure to determine how many Great Bustards tough out the Mongolian winter - where average low temperatures are -30C (-22F), sometimes reaching -50C (-58F). Wishing him safe travels! February 2012

 

Bosoo Bustard Poached near Mining Site

Bosoo, one of the bustards whome we monitor via satellite telemetry, died on her migration south towards her wintering grounds. An investigation revealed that she had been poached near a mining site in south Gobi desert. Her transmitter was discarded not far from a road. January 2012

 

Nergui reaches her wintering grounds

Nergui, a female bustard we have been tracking since 2007, is the first of our tagged bustards to reach her wintering grounds in Central China this year. Temperatures at her wintering ground are currently 17 to 41°F (-6 to 5°C). Meanwhile, temperatures at her breeding grounds are -6 to 21°F (-21 to -6°C). December 2011

 

Editing on bustard documentary is complete

Editing of our documentary has been completed and DVDs with a 30-minute, Mongolian-language narration have been printed. We are now fundraising for distribution of the film. We would like to donate copies to all public schools in Mongolia, as well as arranging for airing of the documentary on public television. November 2011

 

Two new bustards join our team

We've custom-fit backpack transmitters for two new female bustards: Bosoo and Mendee. We're looking forward to observing them on their fall migration. July 2011

 

Two empty leks

Leks are traditional areas Great Bustards visit each spring to display, mate, and nest. This summer we were unable to locate lekking bustards at 2 of our 6 study locations. We are unsure whether bustards did not arrive to those sites this spring due to inclement weather, or whether those small populations have permanently disappeared. We have found high rates of mortality due to poaching among our tagged bustards. July 2011

 

It's a Wrap!

The end of July brings the end of this year's bustard field work and the filming of our bustard documentary. Natsag and Mimi will travel to join Olaf Jensen's climate change research group before heading back to the city. July 2011

 

Team member B. Dashnyam defends master's thesis!

B. Dashnyam, a team member since 2007, successfully defended his master's thesis on Great Bustard diet and habitat preferences. Join us in congratulating Dashnyam! Dashnyam is now employed at the Ornithology Lab of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences. His research and graduate study was sponsored by the Central Asian Great Bustard project. May 2011

 

Career counseling session for rural youth

Our career counseling session for rural high school students was a hit, with over 60 students in attendance. Our team's master's students explained the college admissions process and factors to consider in choosing a major. The transition from a communist economic system in which students were channeled into fields of study, to a free market economy in which students select their own course of study has been confusing for many. May 2011

 

Biodiversity Day and School Outreach

We've launched this summer's series of programs for rural schoolchildren with a lesson by U. Tuvshin in honor of International Day for Biological Diversity, followed by a birdwatching trip. May 2011

 

Action! Documentary Filming Begins

This year we are partnering with D. Sumkhuu, director of the Scientific and Environmental Cinematographic Society of Mongolia to create a short documentary on bustards for Mongolian audiences. We hope that this film will inform and inspire audiences with imagery of this hard-to-observe species. May 2011

 

Bustard lek confirmed

On the road to our field site this summer, we were able to confirm the existence of a bustard lek (breeding site) we had long suspected to exist. We were elated to observe displaying males and three nesting females. However, two weeks later we were dismayed to hear that pesticides had been sprayed in the fields preferred by the bustards. Pesticides decrease the protein-rich insect food base essential to rapid growth of chicks, and trucks spraying pesticides sometimes crush eggs and flush mothers, making eggs and young vulerable to predators. May 2011

 

Toson bustard Predated

En route to our field site we have investigated the death of one of the bustards we have been tracking. Feathers and bones were scattered about the site of death at a migratory stopover. Interviews with local families report an increased number of foxes following the previous winter's dzud (winter weather disaster). Dzud cause mass casualties of livestock, upon which predators then feed. May 2011

 

Snow storm delays field season

A snow storm has closed roads leading out of the Mongolian capital, Ulaanbaatar, and delayed the start of our field season for a couple of days. May 2011

 

Songuul' - a Victim of the Wild Meat trade

Songuul', a bustard we have tracked for three years, died on her wintering grounds. An investigation located her transmitter, which had been discarded alongside a bowl and empty chemical vials. Local people spoke of "professionals" who visit the area to poison wild birds and sell the meat to "wild meats" restaurants. April 2011

 

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Notes from Previous Field Seasons: