CONSERVATIONISTS have called for urgent action to protect one of the world’s wildlife “hot spots” after satellite images released yesterday revealed that a forest in East New Britain (ENB) was being logged faster than anywhere else in south-east Asia.
Before and after pictures of ENB showed that 12% of forest had been cleared between 1989 and 2000, with over 20% of this being lowland forest under 100m of altitude.
The resulting loss of habitat has badly affected 21 bird species, 16 of which are found nowhere else in the world, according to a study by the Roryal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and BirdLife International (BI), published early this week in the Biological Conservation journal.
The estimated rate of forest loss each year was said to be 1.1% in ENB, compared to 0.8-0.9% in South-east Asia.
Around 11% of the land had been cleared for palm oil or coconut plantations, and conservationists say that deforestation had taken place in at least two protected areas – Mt Bamus (2.4%) and the Whiteman mountains (8.6%).
In the period studied, most deforestation took place near the coast, which supports the largest population of endemic species.
“Examining the satellite images of ENB, we were struck immediately by the clear and extensive loss of forest in many parts of the island,” the paper’s lead author, Graeme Buchanan, a research biologist at the RSPB said.
The study, which overlaid the maps showing forest loss with known habitat preferences of ENB’s birds, claims to be the first to use satellite imagery to assess the threat facing bird species, a technique which conservationists say could be invaluable in surveying other parts of the region where access is poor or the area too vast to cover on the ground.
“By comparing this (satellite) information against the altitudinal ranges of each of the birds that live in ENB, we estimated the potential effects on species – a ‘before and after’ of disappearing habitat, and of disappearing populations,” Buchanan said.
Six species of bird, including the Bismarck kingfisher and green-fronted hanging parrot, had lost or were predicted to lose more than 20% of their habitat.
The scientists concluded that the drop in number of the two species was probably over 30%.
Another 23 birds had lost over 10% of habitat, including the yellowish imperial pigeon, whose population may have fell by nearly a third.
Hardest hit were the slaty-mantled sparrowhawk, the New Britain bronze wing and the black honey-buzzard.
As a result of the study, 10 bird species could be given more serious threat classifications by the World Conservation Union (IUCN), when its “red list” of endangered species is updated.
The reports co-author, Stuart Butchart, global species programme coordinator at BI said: “ENB’s endemic birds are being driven to extinction by our thirst for palm oil, which is widely used in food stuff and industry.
“After wiping out the lowland forests of Malaysia and Indonesia, companies are now moving towards PNG and Melanesia, where they now threaten a whole new suite of species.”
He said the area was unique and should be better protected and managed.
“The demand for timber and palm oil is likely to be driving this destruction and if nothing is done soon, some of ENB’s endemic species could disappear for good.
“Logging in the past 20 years has left at least 10 birds close to extinction and if the deforestation rate continues, all forest below 200m will be gone by 2060.”