Shipment of rare birds confiscated in Mindanao

By Manolo B. JaraFebruary 21, 2014

MANILA: A shipment of about 100 exotic animals and birds some of which have been included in the world’s “critically endangered” list has been seized by government agents in Surigao City in volatile Mindanao, according to an official of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Josefina de Leon, the chief of the DENR wildlife division, disclosed the illegal shipment was the handiwork of an international criminal syndicate engaged in the smuggling of exotic wildlife for sale to rich collectors in the Philippines.

The contraband, De Leon said, was seized by DENR agents in Surigao City, Mindanao while they were about to be loaded into an inter-island vessel bound for Manila.

The driver and a helper of a van that brought the exotic animals and birds to the Surigao port have been arrested and charged for violating the country’s law penalising the illegal transport of wildlife, De Leon said. According to De Leon, the law imposes a penalty of six months in jail and a fine of more than $1,000 depending on the rarity of wildlife involved.

Among the wildlife confiscated were four wallabies from Australia and 90 parrots from Indonesia and Papua New Guinea including yellow-crested cockatoos and long-beaked echidnas listed as “critically endangered species” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

Unfortunately, De Leon reported that DENR agents found several of the wildlife already dead apparently due to stress and suffocation as they were placed in small containers.

http://gulftoday.ae/portal/5b2d3083-089e-4ed9-a36c-d550203b4a36.aspx

New PHL bird species found in Northern Luzon

Just five days after the discovery of a new species of water beetle in the mega-city of Manila, a new species of bird was found living up in the Sierra Madre Mountain Range—proving once again that the Philippines lives up to its status as a biodiversity hotspot.

The extremely elusive Sierra Madre Ground-Warbler was discovered by an international research team hailing from the University of Kansas (KU) and the Philippine National Museum (PNM), after two years of expeditions on the mountain from 2009-2011.

The bird is characterized by white wing spots on a brown body, and differs from other species similar in appearance by the coloration patterns found on its head, throat, and breast.

Continued

Birds strike again

The threat of bird strike continues to hound the country’s aviation safety with the number of such incidents increasing more frequently at major airports.

On Saturday, a bird strike forced a Philippine Airlines plane to cancel return flight to Manila after a number of birds were sucked by the plane’s engine before landing at the Zamboanga International Airport.

PAL flight PR124 was scheduled to leave at 6:55 am from Zamboanga to Manila but was canceled after its engine showed indications of a bird strike during aircraft inspection, the airline said.

The bird strike incident was believed to have occurred during the preceding flight that left Manila at 4:43 am on Saturday.

The cancelled PR 124 flight, an Airbus 319 carrying 101 passengers, will remain grounded until further notice, the airline said. Passengers were transferred to other PAL and Airphil flights from Zamboanga to Manila.

In the first half of 2012, 39 bird strike incidents have already been recorded by the safety division of the airport, almost a 50 percent increase from the incidents recorded the previous year, according to the Manila International Airport Authority.

Continued:  http://manilastandardtoday.com/2012/09/23/birds-strike-again/

Rare birds spotted at La Mesa Ecopark

MANILA, Philippines – Several new bird species found a new haven in Metro Manila’s La Mesa Ecopark.

Bird watchers from the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines recently spotted rare bird species called Ashy Thrush Zoothera cinerea at the vicinity of the La Mesa Ecopark (LME), a 33-hectare public park within the La Mesa Watershed in Quezon City.

Red-bellied pitta
Photo: Wikipedia

Ashy Thrush’s discovery at the La Mesa Ecopark was accidental. The group of bird watchers was actually looking for a Red-bellied Pitta Pitta erythrogaster that was also reported to be in the park when they spotted the small, elusive, ground dwelling thrush whose natural habitats are on subtropical or tropical moist lowland and mountain forests.

Continued:  http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/metro-manila/09/15/12/rare-birds-spotted-la-mesa-ecopark

More information on ashy thrush:

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=6310

More information on red-bellied pitta:

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=4010