Misconception, misinformation, misdirection and misplaced aggression–a case study of a murdered Macqueen’s Bustard

Reginald Victor*, Kinnari Bhatt

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Photographs of a ‘spy raptor’ killed while flying over the India-Pakistan border in Rajasthan were disseminated over the social media. The ‘raptor’ was a Macqueen’s Bustard, Chlamydotis macqueenii carrying a satellite transmitter assembly and a red leg ring with an inscription K34. The National Avian Research Centre (NARC), Abu Dhabi, has extensively studied the biology of C. macqueenii. The killed bustard was one of the captive-bred bustards participating in NARC’s monitoring of their migration. Inquiry showed that this bustard was shot in Afghanistan in 2014 and not in India in 2016 as reported. The report from Afghanistan described this bird as a Taliban drone fitted with a bomb vest. The Indian television channel broadcast this news and misinformed its viewers by calling this bird a spy sent over by Pakistan. The Afghanistan report misdirected this incident to blame the Taliban. The Indian television did the same to incriminate Pakistan. The misconceived labelling of a bird participating in a scientific study as a spy has led to misinformation and misdirection that can provoke international aggression. This paper argues that a Macqueen’s bustard contributing to scientific knowledge for conservation has been killed unnecessarily and appeals for an improvement in the knowledge of security agencies about birds carrying identification tags and tracking devices.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)183-191
Number of pages9
JournalInternational Journal of Environmental Studies
Volume74
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 4 2017

Keywords

  • Macqueen’s Bustard
  • misconceptions
  • monitoring
  • press
  • spying

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Geography, Planning and Development
  • Ecology
  • Waste Management and Disposal
  • Pollution
  • Computers in Earth Sciences

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