The Breeding Seasons of Birds on Timor

The breeding seasons of land birds on Timor, the largest island of the Lesser Sundas (Nusa Tenggara) is hitherto undocumented. This preliminary report draws upon historic data from the early 20'h century and opportunistic observations made by the author on Timor during the 1990s, and compares these data with those available for other islands in the region (including Roti and Sumba), as well as western Indonesia and Papua. Evidence is presented that nesting occurs throughout the wet season (November to April), possibly peaking in November. This pattern contrasts strongly with that for western Flores (Verheijen 1964), where breeding is concentrated in the three months from April to June. Interpretation of these patterns must be cautious, however, given the hiatus of data from Timor for the period from late August to November, as well as the opportunistic or approximate nature of the data presented here. lt is hoped that this report stimulates a more comprehensive study of avian reproduction in the region

Nest cycle and nestling development of a pair of Changeable Hawk-Eagles Nisaetus cirrhatus in Gunung Halimun-Salak National Park, West Java

We monitored nesting of a pair of Changeable Hawk-Eagles Nisaetus cirrhatus at Gunung Halimun–Salak National Park, West Java, in two consecutive years (2012 and 2013). The single egg was laid in July in the first year, and June in the second. This is consistent with data from the early 20th Century which suggests these are the peak laying months for Java. Contrary to the literature, both sexes took part in incubation, though the female incubated more frequently. The incubation and nestling periods were estimated to be c.50 days and 62 days, respectively, but as neither laying nor hatching was observed directly, it is possible that the first period is over-estimated, and the second, under-estimated. The combined period (112 days) is consistent with the minimum estimate of 108 days in the literature. The body length (including tail) of the 2013 eaglet grew at an average rate of c. 6 cm per week. Of 21 prey items brought to the nest by the adults, 13 (62%) were reptiles, and only three were mammals

The illegal trade of Indonesian raptors through social media

The use of social media in Indonesia is changing traditional trading methods in the country, and this extends to the sale of protected wildlife such as raptors. Between January and December 2015 the authors monitored 38 Facebook groups and recorded 2,471 individuals from 21 diurnal raptor species being offered for sale. Most were juveniles, and the Black-winged Kite Elanus caeruleus was the most frequently offered species. The peak of raptor trading was in July and August, coincident with the breeding season of most raptors as many birds are taken as nestlings. Regular scrutiny of social media sites and increased punitive action by law enforcement agencies, and public awareness campaigns by governments and NGOs, are desperately needed to eliminate this audacious market for illegal trade

The Role of Habitat Heterogeneity in Structuring Mangrove Bird Assemblages

Mangrove habitats are under severe land use pressure throughout the world and Australia is no exception. Here we describe the heterogeneity of mangrove habitat and its relationship with mangrove bird diversity. We examined the role of mangrove habitat complexity in determining the richness of avian mangrove dependent species (MDS) and interior species, overall bird species richness and density. High species richness (overall and MDS) and density in the mangroves was associated with plant species richness, the density of the understory and food resource distribution. Furthermore, habitat heterogeneity rather than patch area per se was a more important predictor of species richness in the mangroves. These findings stress the importance of habitat diversity and quality to the diversity and density of birds in mangroves. Thus, habitat heterogeneity within mangroves is a crucial patch characteristic, independent of mangrove patch size, for maintaining diverse avian species assemblages