Joint efforts bring down raptor poaching

Spanning several cities within Sichuan province and stretching about 500 kilometers, Mount Longmen is situated on the northwestern edge of the Sichuan Basin.

Ardent bird-watchers often visit the mountain to observe the spring and autumn raptor migrations in Chongzhou city in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan. Unfortunately, in recent years, they have heard gunshots and have found traces of poaching. The bird lovers have reported their findings to the law enforcement authorities concerned and also to the Chengdu Bird-watching Society, a grassroots nonprofit organization dedicated to the promotion of birdwatching and conservation among the public.

Shen You, director-general of the NGO, started discussions with authorities to address the pressing issue last year. Together, they devised a comprehensive plan that involves integrating the efforts of the forestry and police departments, communities and grassroots conservationists to tackle the problem effectively.

"Raptor poaching has long been an issue, probably not serious, but lingering, in the area," Shen told China Daily. "It happens covertly, spreading and becoming a challenge to combat. We heard gunshots, but never met any poachers. So, our initial strategy revolves around uniting all conservation efforts and fostering awareness among the local people."

As the first step of their strategy, last autumn, they initiated raptor monitoring, which was in full swing throughout this spring.

During the 74 days from March 15 to May 27, 92 volunteers from across the country scattered at six monitoring points to complete the spring raptor monitoring on Mount Longmen, recording a total of 32 species and 16,933 raptors.

"Based on community involvement and multi-party cooperation, the raptor monitoring and protection project aims to establish a volunteer team for raptor monitoring in Chengdu," said Yu Huan, manager of the project at the CBS.

"We intend to persist in monitoring the spring and autumn raptor migrations in the western part of Mount Longmen through a citizen science approach, aiming to understand the migration routes, species diversity, population numbers, hunting intensity and trends," he said. "By engaging deeply with the local communities, we want to identify the reasons for raptor poaching, increase community participation and foster awareness and a protective atmosphere."

In the long term, Shen said, the project aims to establish an effective mechanism for migratory raptor protection based on community involvement and collaboration among multiple stakeholders.

The core monitoring site for this spring season was at Dutongyan in Daping village, Chongzhou, where 68 days of continuous monitoring were completed, recording 31 species totaling 15,255 raptors. "Despite a few days of adverse weather that hindered monitoring, we successfully achieved full coverage of the migratory monitoring period at Dutongyan for the first time," Yu said. "Increased monitoring and observations at various sites have exposed potential poaching activities hidden in different sites in the mountain."

The top four species in terms of quantity are crested honey buzzards (9,268), eastern buzzards (2,480), Besra (630), and Eurasian sparrowhawks (600), with crested honey buzzards comprising 60.75 percent of the total number of migratory birds.

The eastern buzzards mainly migrated through Dutongyan in March and April, Yu said. There was a notable peak between late March and early April, with the highest count of 496 birds on March 28. The crested honey buzzards, on the other hand, concentrated their migration in May. On two days during the month, more than 1,000 raptors were seen on each day, including a record of 2,109 birds on May 12. "In addition to raptor monitoring, documenting poaching gunshots was a core aspect of our work," Yu said.

Though there are potential misjudgments due to factors such as construction noise or fireworks, the presence of poaching incidents cannot be ignored, he added.

May 12 marked the day with the highest counts of raptors and gunshots since the start of the monitoring program, with volunteers in Dujiangyan and Dayi, two areas neighboring Chongzhou, recording a significant number of gunshots. "The simultaneous peak in raptor sightings and gunshot reports are, undoubtedly, not a mere coincidence," Yu said.

Fortunately, active efforts from various departments and law enforcement agencies led to the apprehension of illegal poachers in Dayi, Chongzhou and Dujiangyan, he said. "Last year we could hear gunshots coming right from the range we were monitoring. This year the gunshots were from other ranges of the mountain."

The absence of gunshots at the Dutongyan monitoring site this year indicates the positive impact of vigilance and collaboration on a single mountain ridge, he said. "We think that the positive outcome will have the potential to expand from one site to the entire mountain range," Yu said. During their on-site observations, Yu and his colleagues also found a connection between the number of gunshots and the number of crested honey buzzards.

"The number of gunshots gradually rises as the raptors' flight altitudes decrease, primarily during the crested honey buzzards' May migration," Yu said, adding that the honey buzzards remain the primary target of poaching.

"To better support law enforcement actions and accurately assess gunshot situations, we have been diligently recording additional information such as direction, distance and the raptor situation when gunshots are heard," Yu said, adding that volunteers were collaborating with law enforcement to verify information on gunshots and pinpoint their locations at different sites.

Various departments have been actively responding and taking action since the start of the migratory season this year, Shen said.

In addition to regular patrols conducted in May, efforts to combat illegal firearms and wildlife trade have shown promising progress, he said. "The collaboration of forest police, forestry authorities, local police stations, community organizations, and volunteers demonstrates that eradicating raptor poaching is achievable through multi-party cooperation and participation," Shen said. "As the forest is vast and lush, we need to establish a long-term protective mechanism and sustained action from all sides to address the issue," he said.

On May 12, the CBS successfully hosted the second Daping Bird Race at the village. "We hope the event will help raise awareness of migratory bird conservation, conduct educational outreach and legal advocacy within communities, and promote the coordinated development of rural areas while advancing bird protection efforts," Shen said.