Posted on September, 12 2002

Beijing, China - Known for the beautiful shades of violet on their head and breast, and the deep green to electric cobalt blue covering the rest of their body, the Derbyan Parakeet is an incredibly striking bird. Native to southwest China and adjacent Southeast Asia, locals consider the Derbyan Parakeet a sacred bird that can provide warning of looming natural disasters. But despite their elevated status, the magnificent bird has become a globally near-threatened species. In the village of Mangba, near China's border with Laos in southern Yunnan Province, a group of about 100 Derbyan Parakeets have survived thanks to a grassroots conservation group formed by local Bulang farmers, members of one of China's smallest ethnic groups. In 1999, the farmers established a Parrot Conservation Association and developed local regulations to promote parrot conservation. Nowadays, illegal trapping of the parakeet for the domestic pet trade - the birds' biggest threat and responsible for eradicating entire populations of the parakeet in some areas - has been markedly reduced and the parrot population is on the rise. However, though similar to Mangba in terms of vegetation and climate, the sight and sound of Derbyan parakeets are still a rare sight in neighboring villages, where potential threats still exist. To address this, the Parrot Conservation Association, with support from WWF's Conservation Small Grants Fund, is now aiming to spread the idea of 'people living in harmony with nature' to villagers and primary school students through a series of environmental education games and workshops. One of the most popular games — amongst both kids and villagers — is the 'pyramid' game. In the game, players use building blocks representing different species to form a pyramid, representing the ecosystem. Players then take turns to remove the building blocks. As they remove the 'species,' the pyramid becomes less and less stable, and finally collapses. Another popular activity organized as part of the environmental education project was a Derbyan Parakeet drawing contest. A set of postcards has now been printed from the children's drawings. Yaqiong Chen, a leader of the project, is heartened by the strong response to the activities: "Nearly all the villagers, no matter how busy, come out and participate in the activities. They're eager to learn about the environment, and are very enthusiastic about treating birds and all creatures well." In addition to environmental education, WWF project staff and partners have helped villagers devise and install artificial nesting boxes for the parakeets, after studies found that the reproduction of parrots is limited by the lack of adequate nest sites. The parakeets have now not only begun to live in them, but have also even begun to breed in them, generating excitement amongst the villagers to both build more nests and to further work toward the conservation of the bird. Villagers have now formed a monitoring and patrolling team, looking out for the well-being of not only the Derbyan Parakeet but other creatures as well. WWF's Conservation Small Grants Fund focuses on lesser-known plants and animals that are either on the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) Red List for China, or have been officially designated 1st or 2nd Category Protected Species by the Chinese government. Resources available for research are currently almost all focused on a few 'popular' species, such as the Tiger and Yangtze River dolphin, while lesser-known species and their habitats may decline or even disappear with little fanfare. The dearth of scientific data on these endangered species makes it difficult for the government to develop effective conservation policies. Yet these species are equally important in terms of their overall function within an ecosystem. Financial support for a portion of the Small Grants Fund has been provided by Novozymes, Copenhagen, Denmark. For further information: Wei Juan Species Program Associate, WWF China E-mail: jwei@wwfchina.org