Which of the following statements with regard to the arrival of Amur Falcons at Doyang Lake in Nagaland each year from Mongolia i…

Question

Which of the following statements with regard to the arrival of Amur Falcons at Doyang Lake in Nagaland each year from Mongolia is/are correct?

1. It showcases how sustained local conservation efforts can contribute to the arrival and protection of international migratory birds.

2. It reflects the global success of advanced tracking technologies that guide migratory birds back to their stopover sites.

3. It confirms that Amur Falcons have adapted to permanent residency in India due to favourable habitat changes.

1. A. 1 only (Correct answer)
2. B. 1 and 2
3. C. 2 and 3
4. D. 3 only

Correct Answer

Option A — A

Detailed Solution & Explanation

The correct answer is Option A.

Key Points

• Statement 1 is correct: Doyang Lake in Wokha district, Nagaland, is the celebrated example of community-led conservation.
• Until 2012 tens of thousands of Amur Falcons were being trapped and hunted at the roost; a campaign involving village councils, the forest department and NGOs turned the hunters of Pangti and neighbouring villages into protectors.
• Nagaland is now called the 'Amur Falcon Capital of the World', and the reversal is a textbook case of local action protecting an international migratory species.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: satellite tracking and radio-tagging MONITOR the migration — they do not guide the birds.
• Amur Falcons navigate using innate, inherited cues, together with the sun, stars and the Earth's magnetic field.
• Technology records the route; it does not create it.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: Amur Falcons have not become residents in India.
• They are passage migrants, halting at Doyang for roughly a month to feed and build fat reserves before continuing.
• They breed in south-eastern Siberia, Mongolia and northern China, and winter in southern Africa.
• Additional context: the Amur Falcon (Falco amurensis) makes the longest migration of any raptor — around 22,000 km round trip — including a non-stop over-ocean flight of some 3,500–4,000 km across the Arabian Sea to Africa.
• It is Least Concern on the IUCN Red List and is protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.