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| Sunday, 15 January 2006 |
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Junior Observer |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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 Asia's feathered friends in danger... Asia is popular for its many diverse habitats, ranging from the Arctic tundra to the tropical forests, such as our own Sinharaja forest. However, the region's immensely rich wildlife and their habitats are under severe threat due to the increasing population and their growing demands...
The rapid environmental changes in Asia have, as the experts claim, had an adverse impact on wildlife. Today we take a look at the threat faced by a unique group of animal life in the region - our feathered friends, the birds. There is a large population of different species of birds in every Asian country, and urgent conservation action needs to be taken to protect them, warns Bird Life International, an organisation actively involved in conserving bird life in Asia.
The territories identified with the highest number of bird species facing extinction are Indonesia, where around 117 species are threatened, Mainland China (78 species), India (73 species) and Philippines (70). The experts have also said that roughly a quarter of all bird species in Asia are of conservation concern and about 324 species, that is about 12 per cent of the Asian avifauna, is at risk of global extinction, with 41 of these in the Critically Endangered list. Among these threatened birds in the region are also a group of seabirds. Nine forests, three grasslands and 20 wetland regions have been identified as priority areas for conservation.
The nine forests are the Boreal and northern temperate forests, Japanese forest, South-east Chinese forests, Sino-Himalayan Mountain forest, Indian peninsula and Sri Lankan forests, Indo-Burmese forests, Sundaland forest, Wallacea and the Philippines forests. The grasslands are Eurasian steppes and desert, Indo-Gangetic grasslands and South Asian arid habitats. The 20 wetland regions are the Arctic tundra, Sea of Okhotsk and Sea of Japan coasts, Amur, Usuri and Sungari river basins, Japanese wetlands, Yellow sea coast, Central Chinese wetlands, Lower Yangtze basin, Tibetan plateau, China Sea coast, Indus basin, North Indian wetlands, South Indian and Sri Lankan wetlands, Assam and Sylhet plains, Bay of Bengal coast, Myanmar plains, Thailand wetlands, Lower Mekong basin, Philippines wetlands and Sundaland wetland.
The Sundaland region (Indonesia/Singapore), also known as the Sundiac region, is said to have some of the most biologically diverse tropical forests on Earth. However, like most of the region's areas rich in bio-diversity, the land in the Sundaland region too is being rapidly cleared for their timber, to make paper, and also to make way for agriculture and oil palm plantations.It has been discovered that of the 12 bird species in the South Asian arid habitats (grassland regions) under threat, 10 are unique to the region. Even in the Indo-Gangetic grasslands, of the 11 species under threat, nine are said to be unique to this grassland region. The situation is worse in some of the forest regions, with all 28 bird species under threat in the Sino-Himalayan mountain forests being unique to that area. In the Sundaland forests, 38 of the 47 species, in Wallacea, 39 out of 51 species, in the Philippine forests, 54 out of the 58 species and in the Indian peninsula and Sri Lankan forests, 12 out of the 14 species under threat are unique.
It has also been revealed that the four sites in Central India where the famous Forest Owlet, (which was rediscovered in 1977, after a gap of over 100 years,) frequents, is totally unprotected and under pressure today due to development activities. The Blakiston's Fish-owl and Scaly-sided Merganser in the boreal forests of north-east Asia are also threatened due to logging operations and development projects. While several forest birds like the Green Peafowl, formerly widespread in South-East Asia, are now rarely spotted due to deforestation, hunting and other threats, the Negros Bleeding-heart, like many forest birds in the Philippines and Wallacea, is now confined to a handful of forest fragments.
A severe decline of Red-and -blue Lory and several other parrot species has also been reported from Wallacea. Meanwhile, the Great Indian Bustard's habitats have also come under intense pressure from large-scale irrigation projects and conversion to agriculture.The Sarus Cranes in the Gangetic plains of northern India are also affected by the loss of natural wetlands, changing agricultural practices and changes to water supply caused by dams and irrigation projects. The Giant Ibis and most of the world's White-shouldered Ibis are found in the plains of the lower Mekong basin. They too are facing severe pressure due to the disturbance of their habitats. Even the world's largest Milky Stork colonies in coastal Sumatra are located in mangrove forests which are threatened by logging.
The conversion of the inter-tidal mudflats where they feed into shrimp and fish ponds has also contributed greatly to the adverse impact on bird life. The Japanese Murrelet, Siberian Crane, Spotted Greenshank, the Okinawa Rail and Ryukyu Woodcock are also among the birds facing severe threat in Asia. It's important to save these beautiful and unique feathered friends, not only in the Asian region, but also in other parts of the world. Gather more information about the many bird species coming under threat in the Asian region, especially in our own country, and think of ways you could help to protect these feathered beauties. *** Fact-file on birds * There are nearly 9,000 species of birds throughout the world. * Birds have a body temperature of about 41 degrees Celsius. They need the high temperature to ensure their muscles work at maximum efficiency when flying. * The bird with the largest wingspan is the Wandering Albatross, with a wingspan of 3m (10 ft). * The world's most abundant species of bird is the African red-billed quela. It is estimated that the total population of this species exceeds 10,000 million. * The longest incubation period for a bird's egg is 82 days and belongs to the Wandering Albatross. * The rarest bird of prey in the world is believed to be the Mauritius Kestrel, with only a few in existence. |
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