BAHAWALNAGAR: A Punjab wildlife department team rescued a rare peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) during a raid in Sanetika village near Bhokan Pattan on Saturday night.

District Wildlife Officer (DWO) Munawar Hussain Najmi told Dawn that on a tip-off, a wildlife team raided the village near the river Sutlej bed and rescued the rare falcon from poachers, who were trying to smuggle the precious bird.

The poachers managed to escape, taking advantage of darkness, he added.

He said that after completing the court process, the bird would be released back into the wild on Monday.

He said that while releasing the falcon, it was necessary to attach a tracker to it, which not only informs the department about the health, movement and survival of the bird, but also provides useful data for further research. However, the district office did not have any device available, regretted.

He said that while releasing the bird, three of its wings would be cut, which would not affect its flight, but render it useless for poachers, as a falcon’s price depends of on its wings mass; the bigger the wings, the higher the price.

The minimum market value of the bird at the moment was one million rupees, he said.

He added that the value of the bird with clipped-wings is zero and poachers would have to wait until the next season to catch it again after wings regrowth, he added.

Published in Dawn, September 30th, 2024