KABAYAN, Benguet – Concerned residents in the municipality raised concern on the rampant ‘bird trapping’ activities of unscrupulous individuals within portions of the Mount Pulag National Park that tend to impede the flight of migratory birds.
Sources, who requested anonymity for personal and security reasons, stated that the individuals involved in the said illegal bird trapping activities now use high-powered solar lights instead of the traditional bonfire to trap the migratory birds contrary to existing international treaties, local laws, rules and regulations.
The sources claimed that at this time of the year, migratory birds from other countries flock to the country to seek warmer refuge from the cold weather in their respective countries of origin that is why ‘bird trapping’ has become rampant in highly elevated areas, including the Mount Pulag area.
The sources said that the ‘bird trapping’ activities by unscrupulous residents and visitors are done along strategically located roadsides that affect the path of the birds to their desired directions and which lead to dozens of sacks of migratory birds gathered during a whole night of trapping.
According to them, what is alarming is that migratory birds with rings and microchips are being trapped and sold for food and other purposes which might significantly affect the country’s image in the global scene.
The sources explained that migratory birds with rings and microchips indicate they are being tracked by their country of origin for study and it is degrading to the Philippines if the foreign country where the birds originated will discover that the migratory birds got lost in the Philippines via the illegal ‘bird trapping’ activities.
The sources pointed out that ‘bird trapping’ is actually in violation of existing Philippine laws, rules and regulations and international treaties on the illegal trade and protection of migratory birds, as well as for the preservation and conservation of nature
The sources challenged law enforcers and forest rangers to conduct routine patrols along roadsides where ‘bird trapping’ activities are being done to deter the conduct of this illegal endeavor and to spare the migratory birds from being trapped so that birds with rings and microchips can be continue to contribute to the study of bird migratory patterns, among others.
Most of the migratory birds that pass through the Mount Pulag area come from Australia and New Zealand and that they come in huge groups and could easily be trapped with the use of the high-powered solar lamps in strategic portions of the mountain slopes.
The sources revealed that those involved in the illegal ‘bird trapping’ activities are earning a lot from the sale of the trapped migratory birds.
In earlier years, bird catching through the so-called ‘mang-ikik’ which is done through the traditional way of creating fire using forest products had been used to catch a limited number of birds with the use of traps, unlike now where the traps are as wide as windows and the use of high-powered solar lights that attract all the birds that are on flight. By Dexter A. See
