Rufous-collared Kingfisher (Actenoides concretus)
In the first project of its kind, the RSPB(Britain’s Royal Society for the Protection of Birds), BirdLife International and Burung Indonesia have won the right to maintain and develop 400 square miles of lowland forest in Sumatra.
Black-backed Kingfisher (Ceyx erithacus)
Conservationists battling to preserve endangered wildlife threatened by the destruction of the Indonesian rainforest have scored an important victory that is likely to halt logging and allow the habitats to regenerate.
Apart from 267 types of bird, the rainforest, which has the world’s richest and most diverse flora is also home to Asian elephants, Sumatran tigers and the newly discovered clouded leopard, as well as five primate species, sun bears, Sumatran otters, Malayan porcupines.
Rhinoceros Hornbill (Buceros rhinoceros) Female
Most of the newly named Harapan rainforest has been logged for 60 years. Pressures of illegal logging and conversion to timber and palm oil plantations, have reduced the Sumatran rainforest to a fraction - less than 5 per cent - of its former 16 million hectares.
Red-naped Trogon (Harpactes kasumba), Male
Once they start looking properly, conservationists expect to find thousands of plant and animal species in Harapan. The Storm’s stork is the most threatened bird species found so far - there may be only 250 left in the wild. Of other birds found in Harapan rainforest, 66 are at risk, including the rhinoceros hornbill, rufous-collared kingfisher and great argus pheasant.
Source: The Independent
