Population reinforcement

More than 105,000 captive-bred houbara will have been released in North Africa at the end of 2015. The birds’ ability to survive and reproduce into the wild, combined with steps to protect populations, has helped to boost the bustard population density in the ECWP intervention zone tenfold, to 0.5 houbaras / km² — one of the highest known densities anywhere in the species’ range.



Today, the dynamic of the reinforced population according to various factors is carefully assessed in order to determine the optimal number and the make-up of the groups of individuals to release each year in hunting and non-hunting zones so that a viable population can be sustainably established.