The Misunderstood “Hargila” Stork

The greater adjutant stork is one of the largest — and rarest — storks on earth. Despite their positive impact on the surrounding ecosystem, locals in one of their last strongholds in Assam, India considered them to be a bad omen. That was, at least, until biologist Purnima Devi Barman revitalized their public image.

She took a community-centered approach to conservation, using local culture to explain the stork’s vital importance to the ecosystem. Today, a whole army of “stork sisters” support the bird’s protection — and the local breeding population has leapt from just 115 individuals to over 1800.