Pupuan Birds

The bird life here is incredible... and incredibly at risk.

You know, those beautiful tropical birds with the colourful plumage that most of us only see on cereal boxes or in the zoo... well, here in West Papua, there are actually some of these birds left in the wild!




Last time we were at Waiwo, the CI Field Station, I counted 26 squawking parrots flying above the canopy... at ONCE! The twitters and tweets of many of these birds can be heard right from the breakfast table (where we can also now access internet!)

Sadly, the only time I've had a really good look at some of these creatures is because the locals sometimes keep them as pets.






Much more devastating to their populations is the illegal wildlife trade; locals capture the birds, but they have been contracted to do so by wildlife traders, who intend them directly for sale, usually through the conduit of Java, and then often to the international bird market.





... or, like these unlucky endemic birds of paradise, they are killed simply for their feathers...



... to make souvenirs...




Please don't keep these birds as pets! They weren't meant to live in captivity. I read a true story about the Bird of Paradise - that it has never been successfully been kept alive in containment... they always die after a few days, and no one can figure out why. I figure it's probably a broken heart, or spirit.

They're so much more beautiful in the wild... although hard to spot! Can you spot the red parrot in the photo below??? Court took it at the CI Field Station, Waiwo, while he was here for a visit in September.