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Theparrotsof 8uton Island,SouthWest SulawesibyMarkCatterall I havebeenamemberof theWorld ParrotTrustfor anumberof years andhaveakeeninterestin parrot conservation. During1996I was involved,initiallyasa volunteerand subsequently asexpeditionleader, in a surveyof theremoteIndonesian islandof Buton.Thisis locatedin south-east Sulawesiandthe expeditions formedpartof Operation Wallacea's Butonand Tukangbesi birdandmarine surveys. Theprojecthasbeen runningfor overthreeyearsand1 understand thatthereareproposals for it to continueoverthenextfew years. Butonhasrecentlybeendesignated asatransmigration site,despite beingcomparatively small(150km longby 1O-30km across)andthe unsuitabilityof manyareasfor agriculture. Theislandis coralline andlargeareasareexceptionally rugged,withlittle soil.Extensive areasin thesoutharecoveredin cashew-nut plantations andareasof poorsubsistence cultivation.Forests in thesoutharelargelyrestrictedto thesteeper slopes,althoughloggers arenowmovingintotheseareas. Lar~eareastherehavebeen designated asprotectedforest. (watershed protection)butthis appears to meanlittle.An extensive areaof protectedforestexistsin the north,centredaroundButon'sonly mountainwhichreaches analtitude of 1,1O0m. Proposals arecurrentlybeing considered for theupgradingof the
areaintoanationalparkbut alarge transmigration sitehasrecentlybeen established within theexisting boundaries of theprotectedarea. Hugeareasof primaryandmature secondary foreststill exist, especiallyonthehigherslopes.The aimof OperationWallaceaISto establishthenationalparkin the northof theislandandto encourage localinitiativesin conservation. Whenthecollecteddatais written up,it is hopedthat recommendations will include educational programmes aimedat schoolchildren. I amhopingto obtainapprovalfor a separate educationprogramme for theLesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoo. The Bupati(localgovernor)has expressed agreatdealof interest andenthusiasm in theprojectasa whole,sothiscouldwell be successful. LESSERSULPHUR-CRESTED COCKATOOCacatuasulphurea Accordingto arecentlycompleted statusassessment by BirdLife InternationalandtheIndonesian Department of NatureConservation (PHPA),populations of theYellowcrested(orLesserSulphur-crested) Cockatoohavecrashedsincethe 1970s.Thesubspecies sulphurea is knownto havevanishedfrommany partsof Sulawesiandthelargest knownpopulation,in theRawa AopaWatumohai NationalPark, numbers onlyabout150 birds.
c.s.sulphurea is anuncommonand evidentlylocalisedspecieson Buton,whichappears to occur predominantly in thedrierforestsin thesouthof theisland.All birds werecloselyassociated with forestedhabitats,including degraded forest.It wasgenerally encountered in pairsandsmall groupsof 3-9birds.A totalof 34 birdswererecordedin 1996from ninewidelyspacedsquares, all in thesouthof theisland.In 1995 nineteenbirdswererecordedfrom four squares, includingtheonly northernrecordfor thisspeciesfive birdsseennearMaliganoin north-westButon.Fairlylargeareas of Butonhavestill to besurveyed, includingextensiveareasof lowland forestandmorebirdswill undoubtedly befound.Thetotal Butonpopulationof theYellowcrestedCockatoos is probably between50-100birds,but numbers aredecreasing dueto trappingand thespeciesis underenormous pressure. Cockatoos arestill widely trappedfor thepettradedespite beingfully protectedby Indonesian law.No Yellow-crested Cockatoos wereobservedduringbriefvisitsto theTukangbesi Islandsouth-east of Butonin theBandaSea,but surveys wererestrictedto thesmallislandof Hoga.Accordingto localpeople interviewedatWancion nearby WangiwangiIsland,thespeciesis still presentin smallnumbersbut is widelytrapped.
The Lesser Sulphur-crested Cockatoos is one of the species threatened by deforestation and trapping on Buton.
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OnNovember5th,1996,two Cockatoos wereshotandinjuredat Ai~atuhby localtrappersduringa visitby oneof thesurveygroups. Thepolicewerecalledwhoarrested thetwomeninvolvedand confiscated thebirds.Bothbirds wereobserved chainedto a tree outsidetheBau-BauPoliceStation laterin Novemberandthecurrent fateof thebirdsis notknown.A single,extremelywarybird remainedatAirjatuhbut was impossibleto approachandwasnot observed to visitthenestcavity, althoughthebirdappeared reluctant to leavethearea.Thefateof the youngbirdis unknown,althoughit ISunlikelythatthebirdswere removedfromthenestasthehuge treein whichthecavityis foundis situatedabovea50foothigh waterfallandis thusinaccessible. Thissiteis theonlyknownbreeding sitefor thisparrotonButon; accordingto localpeoplethesiteis usedyearlyby thisspecies. Thenest cavitywassituatedatthebaseof a thickclumpof treefernsonthe maintrunkof thetree.(Thetreewas alsousedby a pairof Red-knobbed HornbillRhyticeros cassidix- the hornbillcavitybeingsome2-3 metreshigherup thetree).A numberof captiveCockatoos were seenthroughout theisland(around 10birds);all hadbeentrapped locally.Thisspecies is readily availablein thebirdmarketat Kendari,wherebirdsareofferedfor aslittle asUS$50. ORNATELORlKEET Trichoglossus ornatus An incrediblybeautifullorywhich is commonthroughoutButon wherevertherearefloweringtrees andpatches of forest.It is most oftenseenin areasof moreopen woodland,secondary growth,forest edge,lightly woodedcultivationand coconutplantations. It wasalso notedin mangroveforest.It is regularlyattractedto red-flowering treesalongthesea-shore. Flightis swift anddirectwith veryrapid wing-beats; it typicallyflies10w abovethetreetops.It is a noisybut difficult to observespeciesin the densefoliageof fruitIngtrees, despiteits brightcolouring.Locally nomadicon Butonbut absentfrom certainareaswhereit was previouslynumerous, the occurrence of thislory obviously depends on thepresence of