bird
bul l et in
Middle East
Fifty-eight conservation
organisations across
30 countries supported an open letter
to Lebanon’s President, urging him to
honour his promise for stricter hunting law
enforcement. Despite the efforts of SPNL
(BirdLife in Lebanon), throughout 2017
hunting regulations were not fully respected
or implemented, with illegal bird killing
still rife. The letter, penned by Croatian
conservationists, was sent on 20th February.
Three forest defenders
in Cambodia were killed
after confronting illegal loggers in Keo
Seima Wildlife Sanctuary this January. A
forest ranger, a military police officer and
an employee of conservation group WCS
Cambodia were shot by Government armed
forces who back illegal logging. Two suspects
have been apprehended, but this incident is
part of a recent worrying trend.
ASIA
PACIFIC
In February it was revealed
that BirdFair 2017 had
raised an incredible £333,000 for BirdLife’s
work – the second largest amount in the
event’s history. This will fund invasive species
eradication on the remote but incredibly
biodiverse Pacific island of Rapa Iti, French
Polynesia, home to Endangered endemic
species such as the Rapa Fruit-dove. Read
about this year’s project on page 28.
apr-jun 2018 • birdlife
HBW checklist
adopted by
major European
research body
One of our foremost
scientific publications
has been chosen as
the official taxonomic
reference by the
European Bird Census
Council (EBCC), an
association of expert
ornithologists whose
research informs the
conservation of birds
across Europe.
The HBW and BirdLife
International Illustrated
Checklist of the Birds
of the World has
been described by
the EBCC Board as “a
classification system
that is standardised,
trustworthy and
globally accepted, and
is also likely to stand
the test of time.”
We are proud that
our Checklist meets
these high standards
and will inform the
EBCC’s important
work, including the
2nd European Breeding
Bird Atlas (www.ebba2.
info), the pioneering
citizen science project
EuroBirdPortal (www.
eurobirdportal.org),
and the Pan-European
Common Bird
Monitoring Scheme
(www.ebcc.info/
pecbm.html).
The Checklist has
already been adopted
as the official bird
classification system
by the European
Union (Birds Directive),
the United Nations
Convention on the
Conservation of
Migratory Species of
Wild Animals (CMS), and
the IUCN Red List. This
latest development is a
further accolade for the
publication.
7