Armonia Three Endangered Golden Parakeets originally from Brazil were found being illegally smuggled through Santa Cruz, Bolivia. Zoom In

BirdLife News-Bytes

17-04-2009

Stories in this BirdLife News-Byte: Smuggled Gold; Californian IBAs; Happy Birthday Belize Audubon; New Turkish butterfly books; New Google Earth layer shows where (and where not) to build; Kakapo population exceeds 100; Barriers to migration

Smuggled Gold - Three young Endangered Golden Parakeets Guaruba guarouba from Brazil were recently discovered in a cage as part of the illegal parrot trade monitoring in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. They were apparently being transported illegally from Brazil to Peru via Bolivia. The illegal trade of wild birds in Bolivia continues to be one of the most serious threats to many species, such as Blue-throated Macaw Ara glaucogularis, Red-fronted Macaw Ara rubrogenys and Hyacinth Macaw Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus. However, it now seems to be not just Bolivian birds that are suffering from the country's illegal trade. To find out more about Golden Parakeet click here.

Californian IBAs - Audubon California has combined 40 years of surveys recorded by volunteers and geographical data to produce maps of 145 Important Bird Areas in California covering 4 million hectares of habitat from deserts and forests to coastlines and flood control basins. The maps are posted on the Audubon website, and include detailed descriptions of each area's history, ornithological significance and often formidable challenges. With 110 of 310 California native bird species expected to experience significant reductions over the next few decades due to climate change, Audubon officials are actively sharing the maps with "anyone and everyone", according to Andrea Jones, director of Audubon California's Important Bird Area programme. You can view the maps and other resources by clicking here.

Happy Birthday Belize Audubon - To commemorate their 40th Anniversary and the production of an Environmental Agenda 2008-2013, the Belize Audubon Society (BirdLife in Belize) will be hosting an Environmental Summit. The Summit will centre around the youth of Belize presenting essays they have written on key environmental issues affecting the country. All Belizean students are invited to compete in an essay competition. The essay is to give the Environmental Agenda 2008-2013, its topics and more importantly the concerns of the Belizean environment, relevance and meaning to the citizens of Belize. The essays are to be a reflection of students asking "why is this issue important or relevant to the Belizean Society?" The goal is for students to highlight the implications of the topics in the Environmental Agenda and how it makes them feel and think. To learn more click here.

New Turkish butterfly books – Lepidopterists (people interested in butterflies and moths) are few and far between in Turkey, with just a few dozen butterfly-watchers. But the objects of their attention are present in abundance. Doğa Derneği (BirdLife in Turkey) hopes to create a greater interest in butterflies with its new butterfly-watching field guide, Turkey's Butterfly Handbook, which contains information and pictures of all the country's species. Some 400 butterfly species are found in the country, and 253 of them also feature in a colorful new report, the Kelebek-Türk 2008 Almanac. (Kelebek is Turkish for butterfly.) The report was put together by a small group of butterfly fans and photographers, the Kelebek-Türk Gözlemciler Grubu (observers group), which plans to update its work every year in an effort to aid nature-protection programmes by increasing awareness of butterflies. The group has also helped academics document butterfly species in the Aegean province of İzmir, identifying 13 new species.

New Google Earth layer shows where (and where not) to build - The National Audubon Society (Birdlife in the USA) and the Natural Resources Defense Council have joined forces, with support from Google.org Geo Challenge Grants, to create Google Earth maps of 13 states in the western United States. This new online mapping project will support renewable energy planning and development by helping with siting decisions. This tool will provide industry, conservationists, policy-makers, and concerned citizens, instant access to interactive wildlife, habitat and land management maps to guide appropriate site selection for renewable power generation and transmission facilities. Accessible here, the maps identify areas where land use is legally restricted. The National Audubon Society portion focuses on breeding areas for the Greater Sage-grouse Centrocercus urophasianus in Wyoming and Montana. Other data layers highlight areas that should be avoided in energy development, including habitats critically important to wildlife. Users exploring specific areas, such as those proposed for energy development, can easily see how little land is legally off-limits and which of the remaining areas have unique qualities that deserve special protection.