The most respected bird in the country the crested crane, also the national bird featuring on the national court of arm is facing a great challenge of depletion from its natural habitats.
Crested Crane smart nature and its harmless to human, and its other birds which made it to be considered as a national bird in Uganda.
With its distinctive golden crown, red throat pouch and slender black legs, the crested crane is beloved in Uganda – featuring on the East African nation’s flag and coat of arms.
By 1970, Uganda hosted almost 100,000 crested crane birds, and of now the number has gone low to about 10,000 crested crane birds remaining in Uganda.
According to the study did by the International Crane Foundation (ICF)which done through all the districts of Uganda almost national bird had spread to almost all districts of the country, but of now from the 136 districts about 25% they don’t host Crested Cranes.
Districts like Isingiro which had the largest number of cranes, but refugees from the two refugee camps of Nakivale, and Olukinga are eating the birds.
According to Felix Arinaitwe, a citizen of Isingiro “refugees are using the birds and other animals as their food, they get them, kill them and take the birds to their homes.”
Wilberforce Bakiga, an Isingiro citizen says, “We have seen refugees eat or use dogs or monkeys as their main food, but we are going to sensitize them.”
Vanice Mirember, “Uganda Wildlife Authority Conservation Manager said, “We are seeing some of them especially refugees in Isingiro they are involving in law breaking by eating cranes, snakes, monkeys and many other animals.”
If we continue at this rate, we are likely to lose the crested crane, and that will be very absurd such a beautiful national bird to be lost just out of our carelessness and selfness, she added.
“She said if you kill a crested crane you are likely to face imprisonment or pay one billion,” according to Mirembe.
This decline saw the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) put the crested crane on its red list of endangered bird species in 2012.
Dozens of cranes have in recent years been found dead after they were poisoned by rice and maize farmers in Lwengo district, in south-central Uganda.
Gilbert Tayebwa, a conservation officer at ICF, “One of the biggest threats against cranes is poisoning by the farmers. This is because the birds are causing a lot of crop damage.”
Mr Tayebwa said he has been engaging farmers to use different deterrent methods like scarecrows to protect their crops from invading cranes.
Farmers like Philip Ntare, from Lwengo, said the cranes were sometimes mistakenly poisoned after eating crops sprayed with agro-chemicals and other pesticides.
“I just chase them, because I grew up knowing the crested crane is not supposed to be killed. But government should consider compensating farmers for crop damage,” he told the BBC.
However, John Makombo, director of conservation at the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), said this was not possible.
“It is one of those precious species that have freedom to go anywhere and so unfortunately the government is not liable for any damage done by the cranes,” he added.
Conservationist at Nature Uganda
Sarah Kugonza, an ICF conservationist, said the cranes also face a host of other threats – not just from farmers. Without the protective cover of the wetlands, their chicks are more likely to be captured by eagles.
Cranes are finding day by day that they are living in an increasingly hostile environment.
“Sometimes breeding areas are flooded and nowadays some cranes are killed by electricity lines when flying,” Ms Kugonza added.
Their exceptional beauty has also put them at risk as people are increasingly capturing them to be pets, according to Mr Ainomucunguzi.
But crested cranes, who can live for just over two decades, hardly ever breed in captivity as the birds are famously faithful.
Scientifically called Balearica regulorum gibbericeps, the cranes also have unique nesting patterns as they usually return to the same location annually, often laying between two and five eggs that are incubated by both sexes for anywhere between 28 and 31 days.
The iconic crested crane
All the country’s national sports teams are also nicknamed after the iconic bird, but in recent years it has gone into decline and conservationists say it may face extinction if more is not done to protect it.
The bird is protected by law – it stipulates a life sentence and/or a fine of 20bn Ugandan shillings ($5m; £4m) for those found to have killed one.
According to Buganda Culture also protected the elegant bird, which was seen as a symbol of wealth, good fortune and longevity.
It was believed that if one killed a crane, its kith and kin would flock to the killer’s home, hold vigil and mourn by collectively honking until the person went mad or even died.
