Ken Mwathe Kim IL Kim Hong IL with his ‘Save Natron flamingos” poster at Ramsar COP10. Zoom In

BirdLife News-Bytes

15-12-2008

Stories in this BirdLife News-Byte: Eagle webcam at Estonian WOW site; Syrian bird book launched; BirdLife Africa staff visit children's home; Mini Save Natron's Flamingos Campaign; Mexican parrots get a boost.

Eagle webcam at Estonian WOW site - The White-tailed Eagles Haliaeetus albicilla in the "Haapsalu-Noarootsi Bays" are the new movie stars in a recently launched camera project in Estonia. Every day the birds visit the feeding place for a couple of minutes, not knowing they are being featuring in a large camera project being implemented by a range of different partners. The project is also part of a wide range of activities undertaken since March 2007 at the Haapsalu-Noarootsi Bays in the framework of the Wings over Wetlands Project in Estonia. More info...

Syrian bird book launched - The first bird book for Syria will be launched soon. “This field guide is a critical conservation tool for conservation in Syria and the whole of Arabia”, said, Ibrahim Khader – the Regional Director of Middle East secretariat of BirdLife International. The guide is written in Arabic, covers a total of 393 species and has been jointly produced by the Syrian Society for the Conservation of Wildlife (SSCW) and BirdLife International.

“Birds of Syria gives a significant rise in hopes to protect threatened birds in the country, and provides the opportunity for growing conservation efforts in Syria”, said Dr Akram Darwish – Chair of SSCW. "Local language field guides inspire people to care for their natural environment", said Ade Long, BirdLife's Head of Communications.

BirdLife Africa staff visit children's home - BirdLife International staff in Africa recently visited a children's home in Nairobi (Kenya) to spend time with the less fortunate. They helped to cook, served food, played with the children and talked about the importance of education and wildlife. The visit was part of the BirdLife Africa Secretariat's 'Social Responsibility Initiative'. "We hope that the children become future champions for the sustainable use of biodiversity", said Jane Gaithuma, Chairperson of the BirdLife Africa Charities and Welfare Committee. Read on...

Mini Save Natron's Flamingos Campaign - When Kim IL Kim Hong IL - the young Editor of the children Magazine Eco-generation - visited the BirdLife booth at the COP10 Ramsar conference he was so touched by the story of Natron flamingos that he decided to mount his own mini campaign.  He drew quite some attention with his small poster written ‘Save Natron flamingos”. BirdLife believes Kim represents the future generation, whose voices should be heard. More

Mexican parrots get a boost - A bill that bans the capture and export of Mexican wild parrots has recently become law, giving conservationists hope that threatened Mexican parrot populations will recover from years of illegal trade. In 2007, Defenders of Wildlife and Teyeliz, A.C presented a report entitled “The Illegal Parrot Trade in Mexico: a comprehensive assessment”. The report showed that an estimated 65,000 to 78,500 wild parrots and macaws are captured illegally each year, with more than 75% of the birds dying before reaching a purchaser. These sobering statistics helped the Mexican Senate to pass the new bill unanimously.