19 critically endangered giant ibis nests discovered in Cambodia: conservationist group

Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-02 18:49:57|Editor: Song Lifang
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PHNOM PENH, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- A conservationist group has found 19 nests of globally endangered giant ibis during the current breeding season in the Northern Plains of Cambodia in Preah Vihear province, a Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) statement said on Wednesday.

Community members and conservationists are working together under the Bird Nest Protection Program to protect these nests from human disturbances and other threats, the statement said.

Giant ibis (Thaumatibis gigantea), Cambodia's national bird, is listed as critically endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List and exists only in Cambodia and Laos, it said, adding that about 99 percent of the global population, estimated to contain 194 mature individuals, lives in Cambodia.

"As of July this year, our research team has recorded 19 nests of the giant ibis; 14 located in Chhep Wildlife Sanctuary and five in the Kulen Promtep Wildlife Sanctuary," said Thong Sokha, wildlife research and monitoring team leader for Environment Ministry and WCS in Chhep Wildlife Sanctuary.

He said the species' breeding period is between June and September, and the team is now working closely with local communities to monitor those recorded nests and search for new ones in both sanctuaries.

WCS, in collaboration with the Environment Ministry, has been involved in the conservation of the giant ibis and its natural habitat in the Northern Plains of Cambodia through various activities, the statement said, adding that these include the Bird Nest Protection Program, in which local people and wildlife rangers are rewarded with "direct conservation payments" when they locate nests, and receive a bonus if nestlings successfully fledge.

"These latest findings represent the continued importance of the Northern Plains landscape in Preah Vihear province for conserving this critically endangered bird," said Alistair Mould, WCS's technical advisor to the Northern Plains of Cambodia.

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