Signs in bird migration

Signs in bird migration
Monday February 26, 2007

Ipoh: Birdwatchers at Cameron Highlands are noticing lowland birds that have never been seen in the highlands area “moving in” while indigenous birds have flown elsewhere, presumably to colder climates.

This is a clear sign that the area was warming up, according to Regional Environmental Awareness Cameron Highlands (Reach) president R. Ramakrishnan.

He said that in the past one or two years, birdwatchers had spotted the fire-tufted barbet, rhino hornbill, mountain imperial pigeon, black eagle, mountain bulbul, black-crested bulbul, grey wagtail and Asian brown flycatcher.

“These are species that have never been spotted in the Cameron Highlands area before. The mynah bird, another species you don’t see there, are found in huge numbers now,” he said in an interview.

Ramakrishnan, 42, noted that birdwatchers were reporting the absence of indigenous species that used to frequent the jungle trails of Cameron Highlands.

“Plant species that used to inhabit the trails are also dying. All of this may be also due to local development, not just the warmer climate,” he said.

Another worrying problem, he said, was that the hotter weather might aggravate the water shortage currently faced by Cameron Highlands residents and tourists.

Ramakrishnan said Cameron Highlands, with a population of some 33,000 people, already faced a shortage of some four million litres each day. -- The Star.