In northeastern India, a group of women known as the Hargila Army is spearheading a conservation effort to rescue and rehabilitate the local perception of the endangered greater adjutant stork.
The wildlife conservation photoghrapher Carla Rhodes toured Assam with Dr. Purnima Devi Barman, a wildlife biologist who has dedicated her life to protecting greater adjutants, which in the past were viewed as unsanitary nuisances and believed to be bad omens, resulting in the destruction of their nesting trees.
As the founder of the Hargila Army, a local all-female, grass-roots volunteer conservation effort, Dr. Barman has led her corps of women in protecting nesting sites, saving fallen baby birds and educating the Assamese community on the importance of these rare and endangered scavengers.
In recent years the Hargila Army has grown to include thousands of pledged members - people who have received some level of conservation training – and around 400 women who are actively involved in leading the movement. Most of its organizers are rural homemakers who are helping to integrate an appreciation for greater adjutants into local traditions. They weave greater adjutant motifs into traditional Assamese textiles and incorporate greater adjutant themes into baby showers.
The most distinctive awareness program Rhodes witnessed was at a local wedding that included effigies of the giant bird guarding the entrance and hargila-themed henna drawn on the hands and arms of wedding guests, herself included.
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