Kalimantan’s Black-browed Babbler Bird shows Importance of Research

DOKUMENTASI MUHAMMAD SURANTO

Photo of the Kalimantan pelanduk / black-browed babbler (Malacocincla perspicillata) documented by two local residents in South Kalimantan. This bird was found accidentally by two local residents after being declared missing or no data was available again for 170 years.

Further research on the Kalimantan pelanduk (black-browed babbler), which were thought to have disappeared for more than 170 years, is needed to form a scientific basis to determine conservation measures.

The discovery of a Kalimantan pelanduk (black-browed babbler) by two residents of South Kalimantan, raises spirits about the preservation of biodiversity in Indonesia, especially of birds. In addition to the Kalimantan black-browed babbler, Indonesia has a number of species of babbler birds, including white-breasted babblers, short-tailed babblers, bush babblers, Sulawesi babblers, red or hillside babblers and black hat babblers.

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According to the World Conservation Agency (IUCN), white-breasted babblers, short-tailed babblers and red babblers are on the brink of extinction. Meanwhile, shrub babblers, Sulawesi babblers and black hat babblers are categorized as low risk.

The IUCN has previously classified the Kalimantan babbler as vulnerable. In 2008, the status of this bird changed to “data lacking”.

DOKUMENTASI MUHAMMAD SURANTO

Photo of the Kalimantan pelanduk (Malacocincla perspicillata) documented by two local residents in South Kalimantan.

The rediscovery of the Kalimantan babbler was summarized in an article published by a UK bird conservation charity called the Oriental Bird Club, through the BirdingASIA journal on Feb. 25. The article explained that the discovery of the bird by two local residents, namely Muhammad Suranto and Muhammad Rizky Fauzan, in South Kalimantan in October 2020 was the bird’s first documentation after being missing for more than 170 years.

Teguh Willy Nugroho, first forest ecosystem controller at the Sebangau National Park Office, who was also one of the authors of the article, explained that information about the Kalimantan babbler was very limited and only a few works describe the birds – and not in detail. Among them are the Field Guide for Birds in Sumatra, Java, Bali and Kalimantan compiled by John MacKinnon, Karen Phillips and Bas van Balen.

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"MacKinnon’s book states that spread of the bird is endemic to Kalimantan and that it has a vulnerable status. However, its habits and behavior are not known. A number of experts have stated that this bird is one of the types of jungle babbler birds," Teguh said on Tuesday (2/3/2021).

MacKinnon and his coauthors also described the Kalimantan babbler as a small, brown bird of about 16 centimeters with gray dots on its belly. The bird also has a yellow iris, a black beak and pink feet. This morphology distinguishes it from the bush babbler in terms of body size, forehead shape and a black eyebrow line.

MacKinnon’s book states that spread of the bird is endemic to Kalimantan and that it has a vulnerable status.

KEMENTERIAN LINGKUNGAN HIDUP DAN KEHUTANAN

Pelanduk bird (babbler) species in Indonesia

In another book, Birds of the Indonesian Archipelago, Greater Sundas and Wallacea by James A Eaton and others, the Kalimantan babbler is called one of the biggest enigmas in Indonesian ornithology. According to the book, this bird is thought to live around South Kalimantan and in trees, based on the morphology of its limbs.

Data related to the Kalimantan babbler was first collected by German geologist and naturalist Carl ALM Schwaner during his expedition to the East Indies in the 1840s. French ornithologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte later described the bird in 1850.

However, after 1850 there no new clear and complete information regarding the Kalimantan babbler bird emerged. Previous data even stated that the bird\'s habitat was in Java. However, the Swiss ornithologist Johann Büttikofer identified the bird\'s habitat of Kalimantan in 1895, which was corroborated by the location of Schwaner at the time of the species\' discovery.

Data needed

Tri Haryoko, an ornithology researcher at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) Biology Research Center, said Indonesia did not have a scientific reference collection or specimen of the bird, so it was difficult to identify. "Another challenge is that the nature of this species is not obvious, so it is less observable. It is not a species that has received attention, so a lot of information has not been revealed," he said. (JUM)

This article was translated by Hyginus Hardoyo.