Forty-five metres up a tree on an island in Muluku, Djuna Ivereigh had a revelation. The bird poachers who had guided her into the soaring forest canopy were skilled trackers and highly knowledgeable about birds and the local ecology. Back on solid ground they sat down together over a supper of deer meat jerky and discussed career options. The men of Masihulan village had few avenues for generating income to feed their families; trapping rare birds was the only way they could earn money. Scaling 60 metre trees and negotiating slender branches, they snared wild birds and sold them to dealers for between $1 —6 each. The poachers had no idea that over half of these birds would die en route to their markets, or that some would fetch as much as $1500 in the West.
Djuna explained that they possessed a commodity more valuable than rare birds. They could track the most elusive species and had an understanding of avian behaviour in an area to which there had been very few scientific expeditions. The trappers found it hard to believe that people would pay to view and learn about birds in their own habitat, but they were aware that the bird populations were declining as a result of their activities. Two guest houses had recently opened in a nearby village. The poachers voted to try bird guiding instead of bird trapping.
That was three years ago. Today, the villagers of Masihulan have built three viewing platforms in the forest canopy and receive a steady trickle of avid bird watchers. The guides are delighted to find that visitors will pay $6 to be winched 45 meters up a tree to view a spectacular selection of rare species. Bird populations have noticeably increased.
" Some days it’s like a pet shop up there," reports Djuna. "Like the photic zone of the ocean, 90% of forest life is in the canopy. We have regular close encounters with Seram Cockatoos, Great-Billed Parrots, Eclectus Parrots, Rainbow and Moluccan Red Lories, Blyth’s Hornbills and the most amazing geckoes and flying lizards." A gifted photographer, Djuna has photographed birds here that had never before been documented in the wild. (See the March issue of Island Life Magazine.)
Poaching is now much reduced in the area. The school teacher, village heads and leading poachers-turned-guides advocate against it. Bird poaching has become socially unacceptable — a classic case of ‘bottom-up’ governance. The poachers have embraced guiding with great enthusiasm, as the skills required fit well with their natural inclinations. The competitive energy that once went into trapping birds has shifted to locating and pointing them out to travellers.
Project Bird Watch was duly registered as a non-profit organization to promote sustainable resource use at the village level and develop infrastructure for small scale, locally managed eco-tourism programs. The project provides training for guides, supports local communities, promotes visits by responsible individuals and tour groups and increases awareness of the wild bird trade and its alternatives.
Yayasan Wallacea, founded by Indonesian environmentalists, manages Project Bird Watch Indonesia. Recently the Project Bird Watch team conducted preliminary surveys in 12 protected sites between Sumatra and Irian Jaya. Bali may also soon be part of Project Bird Watch. Djuna and renowned birder Victor Mason plan a hike to Mount Batu Karu, where dense forest is rumoured to shelter rare birds such as the Red Breasted Parakeet, thought to be extinct in Bali. If the trek is fruitful, Djuna hopes to organize overnight treks along this route for birdwatchers.
With the troubles in Ambon cutting off regular tourist routes to Muluku, Project Bird Watch has designed an innovative tour called Parrots by Pinisi. Bird enthusiasts fly to Irian Jaya, then set sail in one of two classic schooners ranging between 78 and 100 feet in length. Over the next ten days, they’ll visit several usually inaccessible islands which are particularly rich in bird life. Visitors are almost sure to see a wide range of cockatoos and parrots, hornbills and birds of paradise. They’ll also have a chance to camp in the jungle, climb into the forest canopy, and snorkel or dive in some of the world’s most biodiverse coral reefs. There is only space for a total of 54 people on six cruises through the 2002 — 2003 season, so don’t spend too long thinking it over.
Back in the village of Masihulan, a logging company recently approached village elders and offered them $2 per cubic meter of wood to clear cut their forest — about $6 for the largest trees. Some of the villagers had visited an area which had signed such a contract with the logging company, and reported that the once-dense forest had become a barren sea of mud. Now aware that tourists would pay as much to climb a tree as the company would pay to cut it down, the villagers decided not to proceed with the contract. The birds of Masihulan are safe -— for now.
Indonesia is home to about 17% of the world’s bird species including rare and magnificent cockatoos, birds of paradise, cassowaries, pygmy parrots and raptors. Nearly a quarter of Indonesia’s birds —- 381 species – are found nowhere else on earth. Sadly, 113 bird species in Indonesia are threatened with extinction.
Even in Ambon, the traditional route for smugglers of rare birds, the dealers themselves have become concerned about the sustainability of their occupation. There have been reports that they are approaching forestry officials and asking them to do more to control the trade in wild birds. Between poaching and a loss of 2 million hectares of primary forest each year, Indonesia’s amazing birds are under increasing pressure to survive.
Project Bird Watch relies solely on donations for its work of turning bird poachers into stewards of the forest. By supporting Project Bird Watch, you help keep birds in the trees and out of the black market while creating employment for Indonesians. For more information on Project Bird Watch or to learn more about the Parrots by Pinisi Cruise, visit www.projectbirdwatch.org. Contact Djuna at mail@projectbirdwatch.org
