India, Oct. 5 -- Not very long ago, the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) ranged across a vast swathe of India, from Punjab in the north to Tamil Nadu in the south. Today, fewer than 150 remain in the wild, confined largely to pockets of Rajasthan's Jaisalmer and Kutch in Gujarat.

The decline has been driven by two major threats.

The first was the loss of its grassland habitat. Dry grasslands, the natural home of the bustard, were often classified as wasteland, leaving them vulnerable to takeover by government agencies and encroachment. The resulting neglect degraded the habitat, reducing the prey base and depleting water sources.

The second, and more recent, threat came with the rapid expansion of high-voltage transmission lines and windmill...