Declaration of the Javan hawk eagle Spizaetus bartelsi as Indonesia's National Rare Animal impedes conservation of the species

Abstract

The Endangered Javan hawk eagle Spizaetus bartelsi is threatened in part by the illegal pet trade. In 1993 the species was declared Indonesia's National Rare/ Precious Animal, by former President Soeharto. Trade in the species and keeping it as a pet are illegal. We consolidated data about the species in trade, as observed at bird markets, with private owners, in zoological gardens (to date the species has not been bred in captivity and those in zoos are all wild-caught that were formerly in trade) and wildlife rescue centres, involving at least 68 birds. The average price for the species at bird markets was USD 40 (n 5 5). The number observed at bird markets appears to have increased over time. Furthermore, prior to its declaration as a National Rare/Precious Animal it was not considered in trade to be different from other large eagles. There are indications that individuals have been illegally exported to other parts of Asia. In the early 1990s no Javan hawk eagles were kept in zoos but it became in demand in the mid 1990s and now there are 11 in six zoos throughout Java. Law enforcement with respect to trade in eagles appears to be largely absent but nine Javan hawk eagles have been brought to a wildlife rescue centre on Java. Overall, the data suggest there was an increase in trade in Javan hawk eagles after it was declared the National Rare/Precious Animal. When a threatened species is put in the spotlight to highlight its conservation plight, this should be done with close cooperation between conservation NGOs and government organizations, with appropriate legislation and/or management plans to prevent overexploitation.

The final straw? An overview of Straw-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus zeylanicus trade in Indonesia

“…The widespread and largely unregulated trade in wild birds has pushed several species to the brink of extinction, including the Javan Green Magpie Cissa thalassina, Blackwinged Myna Acridotheres melanopterus, Rufous-fronted Laughingthrush Garrulax rufifrons, Yellow-crested Cockatoo Cacatua sulphurea and Straw-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus zeylanicus (PHPA/BirdLife International-IP 1998, Muchtar and Nurwatha 2001, Shepherd et al 2004, van Balen et al 2011, Collar et al 2012, Collar and van Balen 2013, Shepherd et al 2016, Harris et al 2016. Indonesia has a comprehensive legal system in place for safeguarding its wildlife but these laws are not adequately enforced and the illegal commercial trade of birds exists on a massive scale for the abovementioned species as well as many others (Shepherd 2006, Nijman et al 2009, Shepherd 2010, Chng et al 2015.…”

Digital media and the modern-day pet trade: a test of the ‘Harry Potter effect’ and the owl trade in Thailand

“…For diurnal raptors, a clear shift of trade in physical bird markets to online platforms was reported in Indonesia. Birds of prey, including globally threatened species, were commonly traded in the bird markets Java and Su ma tra in the 1990s to 2000s (Shepherd 2006, Nijman et al 2009), but at present very few are recorded , Harris et al 2015, Chng & Eaton 2016. In contrast, Iqbal (2016) and Gunawan et al (2017) reported that in recent years, a large number of individuals of over 2 dozen species of raptor were now frequently offered for sale on online platforms.…”

Wildlife trade shifts from brick-and-mortar markets to virtual marketplaces: A case study of birds of prey trade in Thailand

“…Raptors are legally and illegally traded for recreational hunting or falconry, especially in the Middle East and USA, or for them to be kept as pets (Nijman et al 2009;Wyatt 2009;Roldan-Clara et al 2014;MaMing et al 2014).…”

“…Although not common, in some cultures, raptors are also hunted and consumed as medicine or bushmeat (Zhang et al 2008;Buij et al 2013). With the challenges involved in captive breeding of many species, raptors observed in trade are often caught from the wild (MaMing et al 2014;Nijman et al 2009). This poses a threat to wild populations.…”

“…A recent analysis of the global raptor trade from 1975 to 2015 revealed that though current legal commercial trade seems to not pose large conservation concern, there remains a lack of quantifiable evidence on the extent and impact of unregulated trade (Panter et al 2018;Wyatt 2011). Legal and illegal trade in live raptor species have been reported globally, for example, in Indonesia (Nijman et al 2009, Eaton et al 2016, Japan (Vall-llosera and Su 2018), and Russia (Wyatt 2009(Wyatt , 2011. The noted increased raptor trade on social media platforms has also been flagged up (Iqbal 2015;2016;Gunawan et al 2017;Nijman 2020).…”