Hunters shot bird that reappeared 100 years later

TRABZON

A great bustard, which was found dying of exhaustion in the Black Sea province of Trabzon last month and released into nature after being treated, was found shot dead in the Central Anatolian province of Yozgat.

The bird, which was long thought extinct, had been reborn from its ashes after more than 100 years in Anatolia and had surprised the scientific community and environmentalists altogether.

The bird species was last seen in the northeastern province of Kars in 1912.

It is thought that one of the last heirs of the bird species, which was listed as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature since 1996, was shot by hunters.

Track device on back

On Oct. 22, a migration-weary great bustard was saved from being eaten by stray cats in Trabzon’s Akçaabat district and was later delivered to the Nature Conservation and National Parks teams.

After being treated, the bird, which was released back to nature with a tracking device attached to its back, was followed by satellite and radio frequencies by experts.

However, an action was taken after the device sent a signal from a fixed point 600 kilometers away from Trabzon for four days.

Hakan Kahraman, a nature photographer who took care of the bird called “Lazize,” followed the signal and found her dead in Yozgat, shot with a shotgun.

“While we are trying to keep these unique creatures alive, a hunter can kill this beauty without hesitation,” Kahraman said, noting that “words are not enough” to express his sadness.

“It was a miracle that this bird was seen again in the country. Unfortunately, one of the hunters did not allow this miracle to live,” he added.

There are myriad threats faced by great bustards, mainly due to increasing human disturbance.

It was formerly native also in Britain, but it became extinct in the country when the last bird was shot in 1832.