Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-dsjbd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-23T21:26:30.772Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The conservation status of Tanimbar corella and blue-streaked lory on the Tanimbar Islands, Indonesia: results of a rapid contextual survey

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 April 2009

Paul Jepson*
Affiliation:
BirdLife International-Indonesia Programme, PO Box 310/Boo, Bogor 16003, Indonesia.
Nick Brickle
Affiliation:
RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Beds, SG19 2DL, UK. BirdLife International-Indonesia Programme, PO Box 310/Boo, Bogor 16003, Indonesia.
Yusup Chayadin
Affiliation:
BirdLife International – Indonesia Programme, JI. Achmad Yani No II, PO Box 310/Boo, Bogor 16003, Indonesia. BirdLife International-Indonesia Programme, PO Box 310/Boo, Bogor 16003, Indonesia.
*
School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, Mansfield Road, Oxford, 0X1 3TB, UK. E-mail: [email protected]
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Two parrot species, Tanimbar corella Cacatua goffini and blue-streaked lory Eos reticulata, endemic to the Tanimbar Islands, Indonesia, were regularly trapped and sold into the international wild bird trade prior to 1992. Following concerns about numbers entering the trade, but with little knowledge of the remaining wild population or socio-economic role of bird trapping on the islands, international trade in both species was suspended at the 1992 CITES meeting. This paper reports on a rapid survey conducted on the islands in 1993 as a follow-up to the decision on trade. The survey attempted to determine the status of the wild populations, the distribution and activity of the human population, the interaction between Tanimbar corella and agriculture, and the structure of the local commodity-chain for wild-caught parrots. We found that: (a) both parrot species were widely distributed and present at relatively high densities across the largest island in the group, Yamdena; (b) catching of parrots is geographically limited; (c) in the case of Tanimbar corella, at least, the catching is of birds raiding crops and probably involves mainly immature and non-reproductive birds; (d) the international and domestic ban on catching was generally adhered to locally but the reasons for the ban were not widely understood, contributing to a general mistrust of conservationists that still remains. Although not advocating a lifting of the ban on trapping, we do conclude that in this case invoking the precautionary principle without proper consideration of local context may have been counterproductive to conservation goals.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Fauna and Flora International 2001

References

Anon. (1991) Maluku Tenggara Dalam Angka 1990. Kantor Statistik Kabupaten Maluku Tenggara, Maluku.Google Scholar
Bishop, K.D. & Brickie, N.W. (1999) An annotated checklist of the birds of the Tanimbar Islands. Kukila, 10, 115150.Google Scholar
Buckland, S.T. (1987) On the variable circular plot method of estimating density. Biometrica, 43, 363384.Google Scholar
Buckland, S.T., Anderson, D.R., Burnham, K.P. & Laake, J.L. (1993) Distance Sampling: Estimating Abundance of Biological Populations. Chapman & Hall, London.Google Scholar
Cahyadin, Y. (1996) The status of Cacatua goffini and Eos reticulata on the Tanimbar Islands; a preliminary analysis of field data. In Proceeding of the First International Conference on Eastern Indonesian-Australian Vertebrate Fauna, Manado, Indonesia, November 22–26, 1994 (eds Kitchener, D. J. and Suyanto, A.), pp. 117121. LIPI, Bogor.Google Scholar
Cahyadin, Y., Jepson, P. & Mamoppo, B.I. (1994) Status Cacatua goffini dan Eos reticulata de Kepulauan Tanimbar/The Status of Cacatua goffini and Eos reticulata on the Tanimbar Islands. Report no. 1. PHPA/BirdLife International-Indonesia Programme, Bogor.Google Scholar
Collar, N.J. & Andrew, P. (1989) Birds to Watch: The World List of Threatened Birds. International Council for Bird Preservation, Cambridge.Google Scholar
Collar, N.J., Crosby, M.J. & Stattersfield, A.J. (1994) Birds to Watch II: The World List of Threatened Birds. BirdLife International, Cambridge.Google Scholar
Damen, M.J.C. (1983) Physiographic Land Types of the Tanimbar Archipelago, Maluku, Indonesia. International Institute for Aerial Survey and Earth Sciences, Enschede, Netherlands.Google Scholar
Emison, W.B., Beardsell, C.M. & Temby, I.D. (1994) The biology and status of the long-billed corella in Australia. Proceedings of the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology, 5, 211246.Google Scholar
Forshaw, J.M. & Cooper, W.T. (1989) Parrots of the World. 2nd edn. David & Charles, Newton Abbot & London.Google Scholar
Grumbine, R.E. (1993) What is ecosystem management? Conservation Biology, 8, 2738.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Higgins, P.J. (ed.) (1999) Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds, Vol. 4. Oxford University Press, London.Google Scholar
ICBP (1992) Putting Biodiversity on the Map: Priority Areas for Global Conservation. International Council for Bird Preservation, Cambridge.Google Scholar
Inskipp, T. & Corrigan, H. (eds) (1992) Review of Significant Trade in Animal Species Included in CITES Appendix II. WCMC, Cambridge.Google Scholar
Jepson, P. (1995) Summary Report of an Evaluation of Boundaries for a Protected Area in the Tanimbar islands, South-east Maluku. Technical Memorandum no. 1, PHPA/BirdLife International – Indonesia Programme, Bogor.Google Scholar
Jepson, P. (1997) Distributional checklist of the birds of Nusa Tenggara and Maluku, Annex 5.10. In The Ecology of Nusa Tenggara and Maluku (eds. Monk, K.A., Fretes, Y. De & Reksodiharjo-Lilly, G.), pp. 439456. Periplus Editions, Singapore.Google Scholar
Jepson, P., Rias, S., Ora, A.B. & Raharjaningtrah, W. (1997) Evaluation of a Protected Area Network for the Protection of Forest Values on Sumba Island, Indonesia. Report 1, PHPA/BirdLife International-Indonesia Programme, Bogor.Google Scholar
Jepson, P. & Soewoko, S. (1993) An Evaluation of the Conservation Merit of Returning 500 Captive Goffin's Cockatoos Cacatua goffini to the Wild on Pulau Yamdena, Tanimbar, Maluku. Internal Report, PHPA/ICBP Indonesia Programme, Bogor.Google Scholar
Jones, D.I.N. & Dekker, R.W.R.J. (1995) The Megapodes: Megapodiidae. Oxford University Press, Oxford.Google Scholar
Jones, M.J., Linsley, M.D. & Marsden, S.J. (1995) Population sizes, status and habitat associations of the restricted-range bird species of Sumba, Indonesia. Bird Conserveration International, 5, 2152.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Juniper, T. & Parr, M. (1998) Parrots: A Guide to Parrots of the World. Pica Press, Sussex.Google Scholar
Laake, J.L., Buckland, S.T., Anderson, D.R. & Burnham, K.P. (1993) DISTANCE User's Guide, Version 2.0. Colorado State University, Fort Collins.Google Scholar
Lambert, F.R. (1993) The Status of and Trade in North Moluccan Parrots with Particular Emphasis on Cacatua alba, Lorius garrulus and Eos squamata. IUCN/SSC Trade Specialist Group, Gland and Cambridge.Google Scholar
Lambert, F.R. (1997) Field Assessment of the Conservation Status of Red-and-blue Lorry Eos histrio in Indonesia. IUCN/SSC Trade Specialist Group, Gland, Switzerland and Bangkok, Thailand.Google Scholar
Leopold, A. (1933) Game Management. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York & London.Google Scholar
Marsden, S. (1992) The distribution, abundance and habitat preferences of the Salmon-crested cockatoo Cacatua moluccensis on Seram, Indonesia. Bird Conserveration International, 2, 714.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Marsden, S.J. (1995) The ecology and conservation of parrots of Sumba, Buru and Seram, Indonesia. Unpublished PhD thesis, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester.Google Scholar
Marsden, S.J., Jones, M.J., Linsley, M.D., Mead, C. & Hounsome, M.V. (1997) The conservation status of the restricted-range lowland birds of Buru, Indonesia. Bird Conservation International, 7, 213233.Google Scholar
Miller, K. (1995) Balancing the Scales: Guidelines for Increasing Biodiversity's Chances through Bioregional Management. World Resources Institute, Washington D.C.Google Scholar
Monk, K.A., De Fretes, Y. & Reksodiharjo-Lilley, G. (1997) The Ecology of Nusa Tenggara and Maluku. Periplus Editions, Singapore.Google Scholar
MRDP (1988) Tanimbar Islands: Pilot Area Study. Summary. Maluku Regional Development Project, Ambon.Google Scholar
Norton, B.G. (1991) Toward Unity among Environmentalists. Oxford University Press, New York & Oxford.Google Scholar
Norton, B.G. (1994) Thoreau and Leopold on science and values. In Biodiversity and Landscapes: A Paradox of Humanity (eds Kim, K.C. and Weaver, R.D.), pp. 3146. Cambridge University Press, New York.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Poulsen, M.K. (1998) Prioritas konservsi keragaman hayati di Pulau Buru: dengan acuan tentang usulan Suaka Margasatwa Kapalat Mada I Biodiversity Conservation Priorities on Buru with Special Reference to the Proposed Kapalat Mada Wildlife Sanctuary. Report no. 8, PHPA/BirdLife International – Indonesia Programme, Bogor.Google Scholar
Poulsen, M.K., Lambert, F.R. & Cahyadin, Y. (1998) Evaluation of the Proposed Lalobata and Ake Tajawe National Park in the Context of Biodiversity Conservation Priorities in Halmahera. Report no. 7, PHPA/BirdLife International – Indonesia Programme, Bogor, Indonesia.Google Scholar
RePPProT (1988) Land Use/Forest Status Maps. Maluku Map Sheets 2808 and 2809. Regional Physical Planning Programme for Transmigration, Jakarta.Google Scholar
RePPProT (1990) Atlas. The Land Resources of Indonesia: A National Overview. Regional Physical Planning Programme for Transmigration, Jakarta.Google Scholar
Reynolds, M. (1992) Emergency in Indonesia: World Parrot Trust seeks to achieve release of 535 Goffin's Cockatoos. Psittascene, 4, 1.Google Scholar
Reynolds, R.T., Scott, J.M. & Nussbaum, R.A. (1980) A variable circular plot method for estimating bird numbers. Condor, 82, 309313.Google Scholar
Smith, G.T. (1991) Breeding ecology of the western long-billed corella, Cacatua pastinator pastinator. Wildlife Research, 18, 91110.Google Scholar
Smith, G.T. & Moore, L.A. (1992) Patterns of movement in the western long-billed corella Cacatua pastinator in the Southwest of Western Australia. Emu, 92, 1927.Google Scholar
Sujatnika, , Jepson, P., Suhartono, T.R., Crosby, M.J. & Mardiastuti, A. (1995) Melestarikan Keanekaragaman Hyati di Indonesia: Pedekatan Daerah Burung Endemik/Conserving Indonesian Biodiversity: the Endemic Bird Area Approach. PHPA/BirdLife International – Indonesia Programme, Bogor.Google Scholar
Sukardi, & Sutrisno, (1989) Peta Geologi Lembar Kepulauan Tanimbar, Maluki (Geology Map of the Tanimbar Islands Quadrangle). Pusat Penelitian dan Pengembangan Geologi, Bandung.Google Scholar
Whitmore, T.C. (1984) Tropical Rain Forests of the Far East, 2nd edn, Clarendon Press, Oxford.Google Scholar