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UPSC Prelims 1980 · Environment · Species Watch
Bustard King is found in
- (a) Assam
- (b) Himalayan Range
- (c) Rajasthan
- (d) Madhya Pradesh
Show the answer and explanation
Answer: (c) Rajasthan
The Great Indian Bustard lives in the grasslands of Rajasthan (Desert National Park).
The idea
The great Indian bustard is one of the heaviest flying birds. It lives on open, dry grassland, walks more than it flies, and lays a single egg on bare ground. It once ranged across the Deccan and north-west India; hunting and ploughing of grassland have left it almost only in the Thar of Rajasthan.
Open grassland across western and central India → Hunted; grassland ploughed or planted → Gone from most States → Last stronghold: Jaisalmer, Rajasthan
Why the others are wrong
(d) MP had bustard sanctuaries, but the bird has vanished from them.
Also know
Salim Ali had proposed it as India’s national bird; the peacock was chosen.
🔒 Great Indian Bustard: Rajasthan (state bird), Critically Endangered; power lines are a big threat.