Second South-East Asian Songbird Crisis Summit
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S H O R T R E P O R T SECOND SOUTH-EAST ASIAN SONGBIRD CRISIS SUMMIT outh-east Asia is a hotspot for illegal and unsustainable trade in songbirds, leading to serious declines in many species. The vast majority of the songbirds in trade are taken from the wild, sought after for their attractive song, colourful plumage and their increasing rarity. Unfortunately, Ssongbird conservation has not received the attention it deserves, and as a result, many species have slipped perilously close to extinction, all but unnoticed. In September 2015, a group of concerned experts SERENE CHNGTRAFFIC / FDPHWRJHWKHUIRUWKH¿UVW$VLDQ6RQJELUG7UDGH&ULVLV Sharing the discussion outcomes following a break-out Summit, held in Singapore, to begin the process of group activity on behaviour change. co-ordinating a response to the alarming numbers of songbirds trapped from the wild in South-east Asia for domestic and international trade (see TRAFFIC Bulletin to end this crisis. The focus has also been on particular 7KLVXQSUHFHGHQWHGPHHWLQJLQWKHUHJLRQOHG species in dire need of immediate conservation attention, to the development of the much-needed Conservation including the Rufous-fronted Laughingthrush Garrulax Strategy for Southeast Asian Songbirds in Trade. UX¿IURQV , which is now known from fewer than a In this strategy, four main themes of work were dozen individuals, and others, such as the Sumatran LGHQWL¿HGWRUHGXFHLOOHJDODQGXQVXVWDLQDEOHELUGWUDGH Laughingthrush G. bicolor DQG WKH *UHDWHU *UHHQ LQ6RXWKHDVW$VLD7KHVHZHUHJHQHWLFDQG¿HOGUHVHDUFK Leafbird Chloropsis sonnerati (see pages 4–8 of this WR¿OOLQNQRZOHGJHJDSVRQWD[RQRP\WUHQGVDQGVWDWXV LVVXH DOOELUGVKLJKO\WKUHDWHQHGE\WUDGHLQ,QGRQHVLD RIZLOGSRSXODWLRQVFDSWLYHEUHHGLQJDQGKXVEDQGU\WR the epicentre of the songbird trade crisis. These also HVWDEOLVKDQGH[SDQGH[VLWXDVVXUDQFHEUHHGLQJFRORQLHV contributed to the latest IUCN Red List update of 17 community engagement, communication and education species threatened by the Indonesian cage bird trade— for a bottom-up approach involving trade actors and to LQFOXGLQJ WKH WKUHH DIRUHPHQWLRQHG VSHFLHV²WR UHÀHFW UDLVHDZDUHQHVVRIWKHLVVXHVDQGNH\FRQVHUYDWLRQH൵RUWV their current conservation status more accurately. While XOWLPDWHO\ WR UHGXFH GHPDQG IRU VRQJELUGV DQG WUDGH not all the species threatened by trade in Indonesia are legislation and increased monitoring of trade hubs and protected by law, there is a zero quota for the harvest of forums, and the lobbying for and support of increased any songbirds, which technically makes the trade in any enforcement actions at national and international levels. of these species against Indonesian law and policy. 6LQFH WKH ¿UVW PHHWLQJ 75$)),& KDV JUHDWO\ Other participating organizations and individuals LQWHQVL¿HGH൵RUWVXQGHUWKHIRXUWKWKHPHLQSDUWLFXODUWR have also made impressive progress on some actions understand current levels of trade in markets throughout over the past two years. For instance, a workshop South-east Asia, looking at the species involved, numbers FRQYHQLQJWUDSSHUVWUDGHUVDQGJRYHUQPHQWR൶FLDOVWR of each, and the levels of trade. This information has discuss issues and solutions to reduce unsustainable and been published in a number of peer-reviewed papers and LOOHJDOELUGWUDGHZDVRUJDQL]HGLQ.DOLPDQWDQ*HQHWLF UHSRUWVLQDQH൵RUWWRPDNHWKHLQIRUPDWLRQXVHIXODQG research has yielded preliminary results elucidating the DFFHVVLEOH DQG WR LQÀXHQFH RWKHUV WR MRLQ LQ WKH H൵RUW distinctiveness of sub-populations of priority species, Ź SERENE CHNGTRAFFIC / Participants at the second South-east Asian Songbird Crisis Summit, Jurong Bird Park, Singapore. TRAFFIC Bulletin 9RO1R S H O R T R E P O R T Ź which is crucial to informing future conservation Report by Serene C.L. Chng, James A. Eaton, H൵RUWV $VVXUDQFH FRORQLHV KDYH DOVR JURZQ IRU D and Adam E. Miller number of priority species, with more breeding stock acquired and breeding facilities expanded. ,ඇඍඋඈൽඎർඍංඈඇ From 19 to 21 February 2017, the second Asian Songbird Trade Crisis Summit, organized by Wildlife t is widely known that the greatest threats Reserves Singapore and TRAFFIC, took place at Jurong to Indonesia’s avian species are illegal and Bird Park, Singapore. Approximately 60 experts came unsustainable wildlife trade and habitat loss together to discuss this progress and to look ahead largely due to conversion of forest to agricultural to the implementation of the strategy. Participants SURGXFWLRQ 6RGKL DQG %URRN <HW RXU discussed a variety of future actions ranging from understanding of the nature and severity of these advocating the closure of illegal markets, motivating impacts on most species is limited, with basic enforcement actions, breeding highly threatened Iinformation on the current population status of avian species species in captivity for eventual release in the wild, in Indonesia lacking (Lee HW DO 2YHU DYLDQ and the need for further research and monitoring of species in Indonesia are now listed as globally threatened by trade and wild populations. Opportunities to raise WKH,QWHUQDWLRQDO8QLRQIRU&RQVHUYDWLRQRI1DWXUH ,8&1 global awareness of this crisis through campaigns by DQG%LUG/LIH,QWHUQDWLRQDO D ZLWKKDUYHVWDQGWUDGH to meet national demand amongst the leading threats. A zoos were also discussed at length. number of these species are in demand in Indonesia for Other priority action areas included improving the popular hobby of bird keeping, which is also seen as a knowledge on wild populations, community-based sign of wealth, sophistication, and status (Jepson and Ladle, interventions to reduce poaching and reduce demand -HSVRQ HWDO DQGLWLVWKLVSUDFWLFHZKLFKLV for wild birds, supporting law enforcement successes driving demand for the capture of wild birds. along the trade chain and developing a plan for the UHKDELOLWDWLRQDQGUHOHDVHRIFRQ¿VFDWHGELUGV 7KH *RYHUQPHQW RI ,QGRQHVLD LV VWURQJO\ encouraged to take immediate action to close down the markets facilitating the illegal and unsustainable GREATER GREEN LEAFBIRDS: trade in songbirds. It is also vital that the governments of other South-east Asian nations take stronger the trade in South-east Asia measures to protect songbirds from unsustainable over-exploitation and shut down pet shops and markets facilitating illegal trade. Monitoring bird markets is an important tool to gain Chris R. Shepherd insights into the dynamics of the wild bird trade and to 5HJLRQDO'LUHFWRU²6RXWKHDVW$VLD75$)),& identify species of concern (Courchamp HW DO (PDLOFKULVVKHSKHUG#WUD৽FRUJ Wilcove HW DO +DUULV et al. 2I WKH RYHU 300 species traded in Indonesia, the volume of trade in Serene C.L. Chng one species in particular has shown a rapid increase. The 3URJUDPPH2৽FHU75$)),& *UHDWHU *UHHQ /HDIELUG Chloropsis sonnerati , the largest (PDLOVHUHQHFKQJ#WUD৽FRUJ of the leafbirds, is native to Sundaland, including Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia (Sumatra, Borneo, Java and the outlying islands of Natuna, Riau archipelago, Nias, Bangka DQG %HOLWXQJ 0DOD\VLD VRXWK 0\DQPDU 6LQJDSRUH DQG VRXWK 7KDLODQG :HOOV 7KH UDFH zosterops was previously considered to be common where habitat remains, in lowland forest and occasionally heavily wooded parkland DQGWUHHVKDGHGSODQWDWLRQVXSWRP :HOOV but both this and the race sonnerati are now thought to be uncommon, becoming scarce (Eaton HWDO 7KHFDSWXUHRIDQGWUDGHLQWKH*UHDWHU*UHHQ/HDIELUG is banned in parts of its native range (Malaysia, Singapore, 7KDLODQG EXW QRW RWKHUV %UXQHL ,QGRQHVLD 0\DQPDU $OWKRXJKWKH*UHDWHU*UHHQ/HDIELUGLVFXUUHQWO\QRWOLVWHG as a protected species in Indonesia, only species with a KDUYHVWTXRWDDUHSHUPLWWHGWREHKDUYHVWHGIURPWKHZLOG DVWKHUHLVQRKDUYHVWTXRWDIRUWKH*UHDWHU*UHHQ/HDIELUG TAN SIAH HIN DAVID in theory trapping is not permitted. Straw-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus zeylanicus, This species has been observed in trade for decades. RQHRIWKH7LHUVSHFLHVLGHQWLÀHGLQWKHÀUVW 1DVK QRWHGWKDWWKH*UHDWHU*UHHQ/HDIELUGZDV Summit, was recently uplisted from Vulnerable to the 19th most numerous bird on sale in Singapore in Endangered. 4 TRAFFIC Bulletin 9RO1R S H O R T R E P O R T IUCN Red List of Threatened Species from Least Concern to Vulnerable, with a decreasing population trend, due to evidence that trade is a far greater threat to the species than SUHYLRXVO\ WKRXJKW %LUG/LIH ,QWHUQDWLRQDO D 7KLV paper consolidates existing knowledge from recent research on the rise of poaching and trade of this species in South- (AMAR-SINGH HSS) east Asia, and proposes steps to prevent further declines. 0ൾඍඁඈൽඌ Information on wild populations was obtained through LQIRUPDOGLVFXVVLRQZLWKH[SHUWVLQWKH¿HOGLQFOXGLQJ SURIHVVLRQDOELUGZDWFKLQJWRXUOHDGHUV¿HOGUHVHDUFKHUV CHLOROPSIS SONNERATI and wildlife trade experts. Questions covered whether there was any anecdotal evidence of poaching, the frequency in sightings and any population trends at individual localities or range of the species. $WZRPRQWK¿HOGVWXG\LQ-XQHDQG-XO\DFURVV SRLQWFRXQWVLQ*XQXQJ3DOXQJ1DWLRQDO3DUN:HVW Kalimantan, was also carried out by a team of two (A.E. 0LOOHUDQGD¿HOGDVVLVWDQW WRLQYHVWLJDWHWKHLPSDFWVRI trade on wild bird populations. The data presented here MALE GREATER GREEN LEAFBIRD form part of a larger study including additional counts and areas in 2017. Full inventories of markets in Indonesia were carried RXWLQ-XO\LQ%DULWR3UDPXND-DWLQHJDUD -DNDUWD (Chng HWDO VXUYH\VLQ-XQHZHUHXQGHUWDNHQ GREATER GREEN LEAFBIRDS: LQ <RJ\DNDUWD &HQWUDO -DYD %UDWDQJ .XSDQJ 7XUL 6XUDED\D(DVW-DYD DQG0DODQJ (DVW-DYD &KQJDQG the trade in South-east Asia with a focus on Indonesia (DWRQD DQGLQ%DQGXQJ :HVW-DYD LQ6HSWHPEHU 2016 (Chng