Saw one of these incredible birds in the early 90's..
in Corbett National Park........
along the Ramganga in N.India
the 'drumming' of its wings heralded its appearance
Nepal's Hornbills on Danger List
Thu Dec 11, 6:17 AM ET
Keshab Poudel, OneWorld South Asia
KATHMANDU, Dec 11 (OneWorld) - The hornbill figures in The World Conservation Union's 2003 Red List as one of Nepal's most critically endangered species, thanks to rampant deforestation and its indiscriminate killing by poachers who sell its beak and oil for medicinal purposes.
The list mentions that the Pink-Headed duck has become extinct from Nepal, while the Asian White Backed vulture and Slender-Backed vulture are also critically endangered.
Many plants, reptiles, mammals and birds are currently on the verge of extinction in the southern plains of the Himalayan kingdom. Among the four types of hornbills found here, the Rufous Necked hornbill (Aceros nipalensis) has already become extinct.
With their huge horn-shaped bills and magnificent plumage, hornbills are spectacular showbirds of the Bucerotidae family. Male hornbills are slightly larger than females. The sexes can be distinguished by the difference in plumage, bills, eyes or facial skin colors and often by the greater development of the casque atop the bill in males.
Although the Giant hornbill (Buceros bicornis) is in the list of Nepal's protected species, poachers commonly use hornbill beaks as signposts to sell their wares. Reportedly, the price of the huge beak differs according to the species and size. Both the oil and beaks are sold in the northern Terai region of Nepal as well as in the Kathmandu Valley.
Hornbill oil is said to be a cure for backaches, pain and gynecological disorders.
"Due to the loss of habitat in the Nepalese terai, we have not seen the Necked hornbill for the last ten years. The bird is still found in some parts of Myanmar, Bhutan and Thailand but the number is very limited," says Hem Sagar Baral, president of Bird Conservation Nepal, a nongovernmental organization working to protect the birds.
According to Baral, the other three species of hornbills - the Giant hornbill (Buceros bicornis), Large Pied hornbill (Anthracoceros albirostris), and Common Grey hornbill (Ocyceros birostris) are also under threat due to the destruction of nesting trees and their feeding sites.
Adds Dr Mahesh Baskota, Country Representative, IUCN Nepal, "Human activities and vanishing habitat are the main threat to the species, which is fast going extinct."
Chandra Chaudhary, an ornithologist who has closely studied the birds, agrees that they are under severe pressure. "While the Rufous Necked hornbill is presumably extinct in Nepal, the numbers of the Giant hornbill, Large Pied hornbill and Common Grey hornbill are getting fewer every year because of extensive deforestation which destroys their nesting trees and feeding sites," says Chaudhary.
A three-year study by conservation groups (1994-1996) conducted in one of the hornbill's primary habitat's -- the Royal Chitwan National Park (RCNP), 150 miles southeast of the capital, Kathmandu, revealed that all four hornbill species are battling for survival.
The RCNP is renowned as a protected area for many endangered mammals like the Royal Bengal tiger and the One-Horned rhinoceros, and is the primary source for grazing and fuel wood for more than 300,000 people living around the park. These local communities are destroying the forest area, which the hornbill depends on.
Despite annual floods, fires, and river erosion, the RCNP continues to sustain a mosaic of grassland, riverine and tropical to sub-tropical forests. There are 17 species of fruit-bearing trees to feed the hornbills in the RCNP, but even they are fast disappearing.
With hotels, lodges and resorts conducting jungle safaris inside the park, scores of elephants trundle through it everyday. The pachyderms munch on the leaves of large trees like Ficus glomerata (Gular), whose fruits form part of the hornbill's diet.
The loss of food sources directly impacts the hornbill population, triggering a decline.
The authorities are waking up to this now. Says Dr Tirtha Man Maskey, director general of the Department of National Park and Wildlife Conservation, "After our study, we have implemented various programs to protect the hornbill's habitat areas inside the RCNP. The government has already announced a new elephant policy to regularize the number of elephants inside the park."
Experts believe that growing human activities may reduce the productivity of existing fruit trees, adversely affecting their regeneration. This further reduces the hornbills food base.
"Birds need diverse green forest and wet lands, so there should be a thrust on protecting vegetation," says Dr T. N. Shrestha, a scientist with IUCN-Nepal. "IUCN's red list has already shown how alarming the situation is."
But the conservation of hornbills in Nepal suffers from a lack of consistency in policies, legislation and execution. Fuelwood demands have spiraled so alarmingly that the Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation permitted the removal of dying and dead trees in all protected areas several years ago.
Significantly, dead and dying trees form an important component of matured forest ecosystems, as they are inhabited by a diverse variety of birds and animals, ranging from hornbills and woodpeckers to reptiles and a vast number of invertebrates.
According to official statistics, Nepal's forest cover has currently dwindled to 29 per cent with the destruction of some 12,353 square kilometers of forests. |
