One in 10 Hong Kong bird species at risk of extinction: can they be saved?

Avian conservation body’s alarming report prompts Hong Kong birdwatcher to search out the species in greatest danger, including the yellow-breasted bunting and spoon-billed sandpiper

BY MARTIN WILLIAMS

18 MAY 2018 / UPDATED ON 22 MAY 2018

For many people in Hong Kong, talk of endangered species conjures up images of wildlife whose natural habitats are “out there”, somewhere far away – such as giant pandas in the bamboo forests of Sichuan province, polar bears in the Arctic and miniature monkeys in the Brazilian rainforest. If, like me, you are a birdwatcher, however, the list of threatened species feels far closer to home.

The tally of the world’s endangered birds is growing ever larger, with some populations shrinking at startling rates. “The State of the World’s Birds 2018” report, which was released last month by BirdLife International (the world’s leading authority on avian conservation), notes that 13 per cent of the planet’s 11,000 or so bird species – roughly one in eight – are threatened with extinction.

In Hong Kong, the endangered proportion of the total is slightly lower, at about 10 per cent of 522 species. This is no reason to feel upbeat, however: Hong Kong was deforested long ago, wiping out “forest specialists” (birds that primarily breed in wooded environments) and largely leaving room only for species adapted to living in areas shaped by humans.

Indeed, according to the report, human activity is respon­sible for losses worldwide. The main culprit has been farming, which has affected the populations of 74 per cent of globally threatened bird species. Logging and defor­esta­tion have caused declines in 50 per cent of the most endangered species, with invasive species (39 per cent), hunting/trapping (35 per cent), climate change (33 per cent) and residential/commercial development (28 per cent) also having a ruinous impact.

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Biologist reveals important role cities play in conservation of threatened species

Hong Kong home to critically endangered yellow-crested cockatoo 

Date: January 5, 2017

Source: The University of Hong Kong

The exhaustive international trade of wildlife has pushed many species to the brink of extinction. Coincidentally, many of the same species have been introduced to urban centres or wilderness areas outside their natural ranges. In a recent study published in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, authors from Hong Kong and Australia find that these introduced populations may provide hope for these threatened species.

"Across the planet, poachers have reached into the last remote habitats to harvest wildlife populations used for clothing, eaten, or kept as pets in faraway cities," said Dr. Luke Gibson from the School of Biological Sciences of the University of Hong Kong, who led the study.

"In some cases, the traded organisms have escaped and are now thriving in their introduced habitats," he added.

In total, the authors identified 49 globally threatened species -- those listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as Vulnerable, Endangered, or Critically Endangered -- which have established introduced populations outside their native distribution. These include amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds, as well as insects and plants, with introduced populations found on all continents except Antarctica.

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Rare macaws confiscated in first seizure of live birds in Hong Kong for a decade

Smugglers escape in speedboat, leaving haul of endangered species and 14 boxes of furs worth a total of HK$2 million

PUBLISHED : Tuesday, 12 July, 2016, 5:09pm

Clifford Lo

Forty-six endangered macaws were confiscated along with 24 magpie robins and 14 boxes of furs in an anti-smuggling operation on Lantau Island.

The consignment worth HK$2 million was the first such seizure of live birds in the city in a decade, according to a police source with knowledge of the operation.

Marine police and customs officers launched the raid on Monday night as the goods were being loaded on to a Shenzhen-bound speedboat.

“Because of the scare of bird flu, no live birds had been discovered in any sea-bound smuggling activities in the past 10 years,” the source said on Tuesday.

It is understood a macaw is worth about HK$10,000 in Hong Kong. “But they can be sold for between HK$20,000 and HK$30,000 each on mainland China,” the source said. “A rare species could be sold for as much as US$20,000.”

He believed the macaws were imported into the city legitimately but were being exported illegally to escape stringent restrictions imposed by mainland authorities.

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Sea eagles in Hong Kong

On a recent boat trip along southern Lantau I noticed a large bird of prey soaring in the distance. If you live in HK you know that we have thousands of black kites that soar overhead pretty much everywhere including the financial district of Central. So normally the sight of a bird of prey soaring overhead is commonplace and not worthy of note. I would not have thought more of it. But it struck me that this bird seemed bigger and the closer the boat got, the bigger it seemed. A lot bigger than a black kite! Once we got close enough and passed under it I saw it had a wide white triangular shape covering it's head, belly and part of the underside of the wings. Looking it up in my copy of 'Birds of Hong Kong and South China' I managed to identify it as a white-bellied sea eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster). Sea eagles in Hong Kong? That surprised me.

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