In Nepal, as Across Asia, Birds Face Extinction

By Deepak Gajurel

KATHMANDU, Nepal, November 17, 2003 (ENS) - Conservationists in Nepal are worried by a new warning that three species of birds found here are on the verge of extinction. In its new book, "Saving Asia's Threatened Birds," BirdLife International reports that one duck species and two species of vultures in Nepal need immediate attention for their survival.

The pink-headed duck, Rhodonessa caryophyllacea, and the vulture species - the Indian white-rumped vulture, Gyps bengalensis, and the slender-billed vulture, Gyps tenuirostris - were placed in the highest threat categry by BirdLife researchers, an organization that monitors protection of birds worldwide.

Ornithologists have discovered dead vultures in India, Nepal and Pakistan. Research suggests that an infectious disease is the most likely cause of vulture declines. (Photo courtesy Darwin Initiative)

Across the Asian continent, one in eight birds is under threat from logging and establishment of tree plantations, and wetland loss, as well as hunting for food and the pet trade.

"The research in this book can bring about a revolution in the conservation of Asia's 324 threatened bird species," says Hem Sagar Baral, president of Bird Conservation Nepal.

A partner of BirdLife International, Bird Conservation Nepal has been working for the past two decades to protect Nepal's 800 species of birds.

BirdLife has identified 100 bird habitats and sites across Asia that are endangered and need priority treatment. In Nepal, it is the lowland grasslands that are candidates for immediate protection. "A number of wetlands and other birds habitats in Nepal need urgent conservation," the book states.

Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve in the eastern plains of Nepal is listed by the researchers as a worthy candidate for quick action. Designated a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention, more than 280 bird species have been spotted here, including 20 species of duck, ibises, storks, swamp partridges, herons, egrets, Bengal floricans, and many other exotic and migratory waterfowl not found elsewhere in Nepal, including Siberian cranes which winter on the reserve.

The pink-headed duck is pictured on this old Indian postage stamp. (Photo courtesy Birds on Stamps)

The book suggests a solution for the survival of each species, designating necessary conservation measures by 33 priority habitat regions.

BirdLife suggests that it is best to focus protective efforts on these threatened habitats such as the Phulchoki Forest about 20 kilometers from Kathmandu. The 9,060 foot summit of Phulchoki, the highest peak on the Kathmandu Valley rim, is popular with bird watchers, with some 265 species recorded to date.

The birds seen here include babblers, warblers, thrushes, woodpeckers, eagles and many migrant birds. Godavari, at the foot of Phulchoki hill where the Royal Botanical Garden is situated, records over 100 species of birds including the Tibetan siskin and the spotted forktail.

Other threatened areas are Char-Koshe Jhadi, the lowland natural forest in east Nepal, and the Upper and Lower Mai Valley areas in the eastern hills of the country.

Of the 41 Asian bird species that balance on the brink of extinction, 11 may already be extinct, including the Javanese lapwing of Indonesia and the pink-headed duck of India and Myanmar, Birdlife warns. Six of the species, such as the Bali starling, number fewer than 50 mature individuals in the wild.

In some remaining forest pockets the birds' battle for survival goes on, unnoticed by most humans. On the small Indonesian island of Sangihe, three critically endangered species cling to life, including the brilliant blue Caerulean paradise-flycatcher, Eutrichomyias rowleyi, which occurs only in one tiny unprotected forest. This flycatcher is endemic to Sangihe island and was lost, feared extinct, for more than 100 years.

The Caerulean paradise-flycatcher was believed extinct until rediscovered in 1998. (Photo by Jon Riley courtesy BirdLife International)

The second greatest threat is the disturbance or conversion of wetlands, which are crucial for the survival of 20 percent of threatened species, including the migratory Siberian crane and black-faced spoonbill of Taiwan.

BirdLife reports that other migratory species such as the spoon-billed sandpiper and spotted greenshank are being pushed closer to extinction by wetland loss and large land reclamation projects, especially along the coast of the Yellow Sea of Korea and China.

At the Tokyo launch last week of "Saving Asia's Threatened Birds," Japan's Princess Takamado, who is the honorary patron for Asia of BirdLife International's Rare Bird Club, said, “Asia is blessed with a uniquely varied and abundant number of birds - treasures that we are in danger of losing. Now, as environmental issues grow into global concerns, it is imperative that we act with intelligent integrity."

The princess pointed out that the massive Red Data Book "Threatened Birds of Asia" published in 2001 by BirdLife International is "a monumental achievement," representing years dedicated hard work of more than 1,000 Asian ornithologists, conservationists and bird lovers.

But as a guide to the highest priorities and the most important actions, said the princess, "it is not exactly the easiest of documents to use!"

She calls the new book a "highly focused, elegant reworking" of the Red Data Book that will serve as an "effective field guide” for decision makers as they seek to target their energies and resources towards safeguarding the most threatened bird species and avian habitats throughout Asia.

In Nepal, bird conservationist Baral says the new guide will be useful. "We expect that the book will fill the existing gaps and measure the status for government and other organizations working in the field of bird conservation."

"Saving Asia's Threatened Birds" was produced with funding from the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, a joint initiative of Conservation International, the Global Environment Facility, the government of Japan, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the World Bank.