Sempu Island: East Java

By Barrie | August 25th, 2007 | No Comments

Wildlife conservation group ProFauna Indonesia has discovered around 60 rare bird species in a nature preserve on Sempu Island, Malang regency, East Java.

The group’s executive director Asep Rahmat Purnama said the birds were discovered when ProFauna organized a three-day birdwatching competition this month on the island, some 90 km south of Malang city.

ProFauna observed as many as 144 bird species breeding on Sempu Island during the biennial event, participated in by 23 groups from Java and Bali.

According to Asep, ProFauna had previously recorded around 80 bird species living in the 877-hectare natural preserve.

Among the bird species observed during the event were the Javan eagle, wreathed hornbill, rhinoceros hornbill and oriental pied-hornbill.

Even though most of the species are categorized as non-migratory birds, participants also found migratory birds, such as the Chinese goshawk, which can survive in the northern hemisphere and migrates to the southern hemisphere during the winter.

The growing number of bird species breeding on Sempu Island is likely due to the presence of tree varieties on which the birds build their nests and fewer threats from natural predators and human beings.

“The forest where the birds once lived might have been damaged or replaced by other tree species. They then migrated to a new and denser forest,” said Asep.

“This is a very worthwhile discovery and increasingly shows that Sempu Island is a natural preserve that is suitable for the survival of wildlife with high conservation value, especially for the country’s rare bird species.”

With the discovery of the rare bird species, ProFauna expects the Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA) to strictly monitor and protect the preserved forest from wildlife poaching.

Sempu Island, spanning 877 ha, was dedicated as a natural preserve based on the East Java gubernatorial decree in 1928 due to its unique nature and wealth in bio-diversity. The area is only for research and education purposes.

“The ecosystem on Sempu Island is very complete, such as its mangrove swamp, coastal forest, low plains rain forest and lake,” said Asep.

The Canopy bird observation group won first prize in the competition, while the Schedultsem bird observation group won second place, followed by third-placed Gembira Ria bird observation group of Gadjah Mada University’s Veterinary School, all from Yogyakarta.

The winners were judged on the number of bird species they found as well as their knowledge of bird conservation.

Wahyoe Boediwardhana