Indonesian Parrot Project Born to Be Wild! The Parrots of Indonesia. January 2007, Indonesian Parrot Project

Transcription

1 Indonesian Parrot Project Born to Be Wild! The Parrots of Indonesia January 2007, Indonesian Parrot Project

2 Indonesia s Avifauna Indonesia's avifauna ranks #4 in the world which is 17% of the earth s avian population including some of most diverse and exquisite psittacines In the province of Maluku there exists nearly 350 species of birds (20% of those in Indonesia), with at least 81 endemic to that region Many of the Moluccan species are renowned for their exceptional beauty or behavioral traits and intelligence, which makes them highly desirable for pets. That issue has provoked intense poaching which, in combination with both legal and illegal logging of requisite forest habitat, has endangered many birds and brought some close to extinction. Four of the five cockatoos of the world which are now listed on Appendix 1 of (CITES) are Indonesian.

3 Distribution of Cockatoos Within Indonesia the following cockatoo species can be found: Citron-crested cockatoo, Lesser sulfur-crested cockatoo, Umbrella cockatoo, Salmoncrested cockatoo, Goffin s cockatoo, Triton cockatoo, Eleanora cockatoo, and Palm cockatoo

4 Seram Cockatoo or Salmon-crested Cockatoo Status:

5 Breeding: Seram cockatoos nest in dark tree cavities, and the parents stay close to the chick, lavishing it with attention. Even after fledging, the juvenile stays with its parents for a year or more. We have observed parents feeding a fledgling while sitting on a tree limb, even seeming to try to force more food upon an obviously-sated youngster. This bird was much older than the weaning age of companion birds. The limited breeding data on Indonesian cockatoos indicates that the Seram cockatoo breeds once a year between July and September, and probably a second time at the beginning of the year. Usually two eggs are laid; only one is raised. Diet: Obviously we know that cockatoos favor nuts and wild cockatoos prefer canari nuts. But in fact the parts of the tree and plant most often favored by the white and pink cockatoos are the fruits, which they supplement with some nuts, flowers, berries, young leaves and shoots, and the occasional larva or arthropod. In fact, wild cockatoos will eat the fruits off favored delicacies and then drop the nuts! Behavior: However, cockatoos live in a complex society based long term social bonds. Generally it is a monogamous society, but this is not absolute. Trappers claim that Seram cockatoo hens have brief "affairs" before returning to their partners but we do not recommend incorporating this into your household protocol!

6 Enrichment: Seram cockatoos play by bathing in wet leaves after a rain; playing with twigs they break off; and striping bark off larger branches. Their highly developed brains are also kept active during the large percentage of the day spent foraging for food Feather Destructive Behavior: According to trappers and our observations of the wild parrots and birds that come to Kembali Bebas, feather destructive behavior has not been observed in wild Salmon-crested, Citron-crested, or Triton cockatoos--at least until they are trapped and put into cages, where it may rapidly appear. Mate Aggression: The same is true for cockatoo aggression against mates or chicks. Thus the stress of confinement without adequate space in which to move (and to fly) might be a major contributor to some types of aberrant cockatoo behaviors

7 Eclectus Parrot Range and Habitat: Eclectus can be found in both secondary and primary rainforest throughout many parts of Eastern Indonesia. Small fenced in gardens surrounded by primary rainforest are the perfect environment for Eclectus parrots. They have been seen from sea level to 800 meters. Behavior: These birds are very gregarious and tend to congregate in single sex groups. For males the group can run up to 20 individuals, female groups are smaller and usually 5-10 birds. Males sound an alarm when they first take flight, and they all continue to squawk while they fly. Since they do not normally need to fly long distances unbroken by trees, their flights away from predators are usually short and they scream the whole way.

8 Enrichment: These birds are playful, and we have observed them chasing other birds just for fun. The birds have also been observed bathing in the wet leaves of trees. Diet: Eclectus love to eat seeds and grains and in some areas of Papua New Guinea, they get into the village sugar cane and corn crops. They also favor papaya, mango, star fruit, pomelo, bananas, pineapple, passion fruit and guava.

9 Breeding: From research conducted on Australian eclectus, we found some similar characteristics in the Indonesian birds. The eclectus displays one of the most dramatic powers of sex allocation ever reported in birds, that is, the hen seems capable of somehow controlling the sex of her offspring. One hen (reported elsewhere) produced a run of 30 straight male offspring. Females breed co-operatively with as many as 5 male suitors during a given breeding cycle. The males bring food and provide sexual favors, but are not allowed to enter the nest cavity. Each female is attended by these males during the up to eight month period when she does not leave the nest hole: rather she feeds the nestlings and guards the nest hole against intruders even to the point of her death.

10 Palm Cockatoo kkkkk

11 Great Billed Parrot Range: Widely distributed in Eastern Indonesia with five subspecies Habitat: Mainly a small island species but also occurs coastally and, less commonly in nearby hills on some larger islands. Inhabits primary and tall secondary lowland and hill forest, forest edge, mangroves and coastal woodland, and lightly wooded cultivation. They are seen sea level to 1000m although on Seram we measured them with GPS flying almost directly across from us on the platform at about 70 meters.

12 Great fact: These birds are rarely trapped for the illegal trade! Behaviors: We observed these birds most often in the late afternoon and early morning or when flying to roost in groups of individuals. They are noisy when in flight. They tend to perch in in the open in dead trees (see video) or in the lower canopy. They are also nomadic, and sometimes travel between small islands. We saw this first hand at Stone Island in West Papua, In Joseph M. Forshaw s book Parrots of the World (1978) In it he cites several instances where great bills were seen flying in flocks of 100 or more in the early evening always flying in an east to west pattern. As we began to document our sightings of these birds we found that at least during roosting activities the birds always fly from east to west. Diet: Great bills like to feed in fruiting trees including Sonneratira alba and canari. If near a village or farm, they also have a weakness for corn. Video

13 Indonesian Parrot Project -Mission & Goals The primary mission of the Indonesian Parrot Project is to conserve and protect the endangered wild cockatoos and parrots of Indonesia, while providing sustainable alternate means of income for local villagers in order to reduce trapping and instill local pride in their endemic avifauna. To achieve our mission we: Help provide sustainable income for local villages to reduce trapping of cockatoos and parrots through eco-tourism, organic farming, health initiatives, and our molucca nut program. Oppose the trade in wild-caught parrots and work towards ending illegal trapping and smugglng Oversee Kembali Bebas Avian Center Develop projects and conduct field research to study, avian diet, and behavior so that we can protect and enhance the lives of both wild and companion parrots Serve as a source of information and education related to Indonesian parrots and cockatoos Educate the public about conservation, protection of wild parrots, and rescue and rehabilitation of companion parrots through all forms of media Encourage the collaboration and the sharing of knowledge between scientists, zoos, conservationists, aviculturists, and companion parrot owners

14 The 120 Birds Currently Residing at Kembali Bebas Include: Eclectus (eclectus roratus roratus) (eclectus roratus polychloros and eclectus roratus vosmaeri Chattering Lory (Lorius garrulus flavopalliatus) Citron-crested Cockatoo (cacatua sulfurea citrinocristata) Salmon-crested Cockatoo or Seram cockatoo (cacatua moluccensis) Black-capped Lory (Lorius lory lory) Purple-capped Lory (Lorius domicellus) Blue-streaked Lory (eos reiculata) Sulfur-crested Cockatoo (cacatua galerita eleanora) Moluccan Red Lory (eos bornea bornea) Rainbow Lorikeet (trichoglossus haematodus) Umbrella Cockatoo (cacatua alba) Goffins Cockatoo (cacatua gofini) Video

15 Soft Release Preparations Quarantine of all birds for a minimum of 30 days (usually 60 days or more) Medical examination, and treatment of all birds after confiscation and full disease testing before the release. A period of "socialization" during which the birds can be observed to see if they exhibit normal behaviors of a wild bird and are able to fly, eat natural forest foods, and display other behaviors needed for their survival in the wild. Birds are given final brief physical exam, banded, marked and microchipped After the release, food and shelter (an open cage, usually the habituation cage) is provided for at least four weeks so that the birds can return to get supplemental food and protection, if needed, while they "learn" again how to survive in the wild Video After the release, the status of the birds is monitored to gain critical information about whether the release was a success--were the birds seen alive again? Were they in groups or alone? Did they need to return for the supplemental food and shelter and if so, for how long after their release? Is there evidence of injuries or death (bird carcass found in the forest) etc.

16 What Happened Next? Birds departed from the cage in less than fifteen minutes They flew towards the village of Masihulan and then turned around and went straight back into the forest There were sightings two weeks after the release and then nothing In January of 2007, two birds were positively identified by their bands and observed less than 400 meters from the release site at their NEST SITE! These two birds were obviously a pair!

17 Thank-you! References: To all of YOU for your support and help! To Stewart Metz, Kevin Sharp & Mandy Andrea for their AWESOME photos