The Chinese Crested Tern (Thalasseus bernsteini) is currently holding the title of the world’s rarest bird, due to their low estimated individual number which is less than 100. This species is predicted to spend the winter by migrating to a number of Southeast Asian countries, including Indonesia. Currently, the northern waters of Seram Island in Maluku Province are the only known migration destination of Chinese Crested Tern in Indonesia.
In cooperation with BirdLife International Asia Division, Burung Indonesia visited Seram in 2016 and 2017. Although some clues on the population of this species in winter period were discovered, no new site has been found. To track general migration movement of Chinese Crested Tern and optimize the conservation efforts on globally-endangered seabirds, satellite tagging was conducted to Greater Crested Terns (Thalasseus bergii) at northern waters of Seram Island on 7-13 February 2018.
Targeted birds were captured using bow net traps when the tide flooded the area where they perched. The capturing and tagging were carried out under supervision of Indonesia Bird Banding Scheme (IBBS) and foreign experts with competency on handling the species.
“The overall tagging operation was 95% successful, with 5% the remainder was the uncaptured and untagged Chinese Crested Tern. However, seven Greater Crested Terns were successfully tagged, which was a great achievement considering that was the first ever satellite tagging on seabird in Indonesia. Hopefully, from this point forward, we’ll be able to track down the bird’s migration pattern and locate areas that are important for these species, in particular in Indonesian waters,” said Ferry Hasudungan, Biodiversity Conservation Specialist of Burung Indonesia.
Three targeted individuals have three digits code carved and a metal ring permanently placed on the other foot. After the tagging is completed, we can expect the migration pathway of the tagged birds will be able to be monitored. Some Pattimura University and Hongkong University students were involved in the activity as a part of education and awareness efforts on Crested Terns conservation.
Connectivity of marine protected areas in Indonesia
The aim of ring tagging was not only to discover the Chinese Crested Tern’s migration pathway and locate the Greater Crested Tern in Indonesia, but also to encourage seabird conservation in the country. Indonesia is rich in seabird’s diversity and provides important habitats to the population of both resident and migratory species. Unfortunately, despite their significant role for the aquatic ecosystem, seabirds are yet to be a strong indicator to encourage the establishment of marine conservation areas in Indonesia.
Seabirds are vital to identify marine areas with high conservation value which are associated with biodiversity richness. We are still lacking information on the existence of important seabird sites in Indonesia. To overcome this, more research or studies on seabirds are needed to optimize the conservation actions.
Compared to other marine species, such as fish or sea mammals, seabirds are relatively easy to observe. Seabirds are also perfect candidates to identify and protect an area for the benefit of diverse marine communities.
Seabirds are an important mid-ranking predator (mesopredator). They track primary and fishery production areas and identify essential oceanography traits for many species such as fronts, tidal current, upwelling regions, shelf breaks, and other related things. Protecting seabirds is necessary, considering their significant role in marine ecosystems. By conducting the tagging activity, it is expected the efforts to conserve the seabirds can be improved.