Great Indian Bustard

[Kaustuv Chatterjee]

In the gathering dusk walked one, one among 300...or 400? One whose days on this planet is perilously close to being numbered.

I cannot disclose where I shot this, for ethical reasons. This is a 50% crop, hence the loss in detail, but then an era of persecution and hunting for meat by humans, have left them extremely wary of our presence. I was lucky to come close enough to get this shot.

I hope forces conspire to allow it to prosper. Its habitat of open range / grassland, in competition with the ever increasing hordes of humans with their livestock and dogs pose a serious threat. Notification of its habitat as protected is not terribly effective as they tend to wander into grassland / farms, populated by humans. Here's wishing it life.

Shot at 420 mm, with the Nikon D90, Nikkor 300 mm f4 + 1.4TCE, ISO 800, 1/640s - F/5.6, +0.3EV