Abstract

Keywords

Introduction

Material and methods

Data acquisition

Analysis

Results

Trade in bird markets

Online trade and monetary value

Turnover and overall levels of trade

Evidence of enforcement of protected species legislation

Discussion

Declaration of competing interest

Acknowledgments

References

Abstract

The Asian Songbird Crisis—the recognition that the cage bird trade is the number one threat to many songbirds—has focussed on either individual bird markets or specific taxa. We here show, through sustained monitoring, that even species that were not thought to be traded are also at risk from overexploitation. The Javan crocias Laniellus albonotatus is endemic to the montane forests of western Java–this remoteness was thought to be the reason why it had escaped from being at risk. We surveyed 21 bird markets over a 44-month period; the number of crocias recorded in markets (1.29 birds/survey) was negatively related to the distance to its habitat. The size of the bird market had no effect on the number of crocias we recorded. Prices (US$26.70/bird), when corrected for inflation, did not change over 12 years suggesting supply can keep up with demand. Turnover is high (50% sold after 8 days), and we estimate the total trade at 1,200 to 1,500 birds/year. Legal protection of Javan crocias seen in isolation thus far is proven to be ineffective. A more inclusive approach where government bodies, conservation agencies and society participate, is needed to curb the trade in this and other imperiled songbirds.

Introduction

The insatiable demand for cage birds in Indonesia and other parts of Asia has led to what has been termed the Asian Songbird Crisis (Eaton et al 2016; Owen et al 2014; Sykes 2017). While large-scale capturing and trade in songbirds has been ongoing since at least the 1960s, it is now clear that this trade is a major impediment for the survival of many bird species (e.g. Collar et al 2012; Eaton et al 2016; Harris et al 2015; Nijman et al 2009, 2017; Nijman and Nekaris 2017; Shepherd 2011; Shepherd et al 2016, 2020). The trade is most pronounced on the Indonesian island of Java (Jepson and Ladle 2005, 2009; Marshall et al 2020; Nash 1993). Songbirds are openly traded in bird markets (pasar burung) or animal markets (pasar hewan) that are found in many of the larger cities on these islands. The number of birds traded in these markets is staggering, with for instance Chng et al (2015) recording 16,171 largely wild-caught birds of 190 species during a single visit to the Pramuka bird market in Jakarta in 2015. Increasing human populations, with a growing middle class with disposable income, weak governance and rampant corruption, low compliance with bird protection laws and bird trade regulations, and a society where keeping wild, rare, and protected birds does not carry a social stigma, hamper effective bird conservation in Indonesia (Nijman et al 2018). Hitherto the focus on many recent bird market studies has been on the globally threatened or otherwise rare species (e.g. Krishna et al 2019; Bali myna Leucopsar rothschildi: Jepson 2016; black-winged myna Acridotheres melanopterus: Nijman et al 2018; strawheaded bulbul Pycnonotus zeylanicus: Bergin et al 2018), those taxa that are traded in large numbers (parrots in Indonesia: Setiyani and Ahmadi 2020; white-rumped shama Kittacincla malabarica and Chinese hwamei Garrulax canorus traded throughout Southeast Asia: Leupen et al 2018; Shepherd et al 2020) or ones that have seen an increase in trade in recent years (e.g. owls in Indonesia: Nijman and Nekaris 2017; parrots in Singapore: Aloysius et al 2020). We here focus on a little-known small-range songbird, that while protected is traded illicitly and that has received little attention from the conservation community.