Bid to save habitat barred by indifference

An attempt by conservationists to save the world's only habitat of Gurney's Pitta bird (Pitta gurneyi) has failed, with only a dozen couples left due to inadequate resources and lack of co-operation from Thai locals and forestry officials.

Pitta gurneyi HABITAT: Level lowland semi-evergreen rain forest below 150m. GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD: Peninsular Thailand and adjacent southern Tenasserim, Myanmar. Found in the only remaining area of lowland rainforest in Thailand CURRENT POPULATION: Gurney's Pitta is close to extinction in Thailand, and there have been no records in Myanmar since 1914. The species has been recorded at four sites in Thailand but the only possibly viable population known is at Khao Nor Chuchi in Krabi province, where numbers have declined from 39 to 40 pairs in 1986 to 21 to 25 pairs at present SIZE: 20cm. WEIGHT: Estimated at 0.10 to 0.11kg. AVERAGE LIFE EXPECTANCY: Not known. NORMAL DIET: Worms, snails and insects. NORMAL LIFESTYLE: Primarily a ground living bird. It escapes when alarmed through a series of rapid, bounding hops or short flights close to the ground. It has a shy and secretive habit. When feeding, leaves and other debris are flicked over with its strong bill. The Pitta has a strong sense of smell, used for locating earthworm prey within the forest debris. PREVIOUS GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD: Lowland evergreen forests in Myanmar and Thailand in the northern half of the Thai Peninsula. REASONS FOR DECLINE: Almost total destruction of level lowland forest within its range, for settlement and during logging.

The Khao Nor Chuchi Lowland Project finally ended after 10 years in the South of Thailand without much success in terms of sustainable management, as encroachment remained prevalent due to corruption in various government agencies and the number of the birds dwindling, according to project manager Philip Round at Mahidol University. "The problem is when we talk about lowland forests, people don't understand because they've never seen it," he said. "Most has been cleared for farmland by their ancestors."And the bird expert has good reason to be concerned. Not only is the forest Thailand's last remaining lowland forest, it is probably one of the last few remaining in the region. It is also the only place where Gurney's Pittas are found. Believed to be extinct, the species was discovered by Mr Round and Uthai Treesucon at Khao Pra-Bang Khram forest which was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1990 by the Royal Forestry Department.There were 40 pairs of Gurney's Pittas recorded in 1987.The 200 km2 Khao Nor Chuchi is a small hill enclosed by Krabi, Trang and Nakhon Si Thammarat provinces, with the lowland forest in Krabi and Trang. One-third of the area is farmland, mostly located within the sanctuary. The hill acts as a watershed to over 2,000 km2 of farmland in the two provinces. Given this ecological and social significance, the project obtained financial support from BirdLife International, Japan Fund for Global Environment, Tokyo-based Keidanren Nature Conservation Fund and Danish Co-operation for Environment Development, totalling around 40 million baht (1 US Dollar = 38.3100 Thai Baht). Mr Round said the project was not successful because the government did not have a clear policy towards protection. This ambiguity greatly hampered their work, which was already troubled by the locals' resistance. Moreover, much of the financing was diverted in typical Thai fashion. "How can they solve the problem when there are only two officials while encroachment is coming from all sides?" Mr Round said. Maintaining the park goes against the interests of many in the country's elite, the rich, developers and corrupt local government officials who profit from developers' activities. The project adviser, Asst Prof Samaisukh Sophasan at Faculty of Science, Mahidol University, said the officials were enthusiastic about saving the bird's habitat. "The current sanctuary chief, Komol Jaisawang, is very helpful. His only problem is seniority. Although he gets along with the locals, his superiors don't really listen to a C-5 officer," Mr Samaisukh said. Kinship also played a part. Thanom Hubthong, chairman of Khlong Thom Nua Tambon Administration, said tem porary staff refused to inform police or arrest encroachers because they were relatives. But the biggest problem was dark influences. Mr Thanom said many arrests ended up with the violators released without being charged. "Most of the people who occupy the area are rich and influential people from outside, not the poor. Most of the people who cleared the lowland forests are local influential people including community leaders," Mr Round said in his report. Mr Thanom said most of the villagers were happy with the project and would like to have more such programs. "Those opposing it are the encroachers and new settlers. The rest of us know how important this forest is to our lives."

The Khao Nor Chuchi project is now in limbo. Despite deputy forestry chief Wattana Kaewkhamnerd's assurance he would do his best, the villagers know the problem will get worse now that funding has ended.