More than 5000 North African Houbara have been released into the desert as part of the UAE’s integrated program in partnership with Emirates Centre for Wildlife Propagation (ECWP) in Missour, Morocco. The program aims to develop a sustainable population of the birds, which are listed as “Vulnerable” on the Red Data list.General Shaikh Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces participated in the release of the more than 5000 captive bred birds. "We are very excited to have helped increase the Houbara population in the wild. The UAE is committed to restoring an unlimited Houbara population in the wild," said Shaikh Mohammad.General Shaikh Mohammad added that the Houbara population had, in the past, seriously declined due to loss of habitat, hunting and other detrimental factors. The captive breeding program has created a self sustaining population of birds and a set target of 5000 birds per year will be released to create the “unlimited wild population.”

http://www.gulfnews.com/nation/Environment/10202367.html 

Info: The North African Houbara Bustard is one of the 3 sub species of Houbara Bustard, which are all similar in appearance. (Bird: The Definitive Visual Guide; Audubon, DK Publishing, USA)

It breeds in deserts as well as arid areas. The word Houbara is derived from Arabic حبارى. The Houbara Bustard is 60 cm tall with a wingspan of 140 cm. It feeds on insects, seeds and small mammals and invertebrates. (Wikipedia)

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