THE National Environment Planning Agency (NEPA) yesterday said it would form a bird count survey team to monitor the population of game birds to determine whether it can sustain the yearly loss of thousands of birds during bird-shooting seasons.

According to Yvette Strong of NEPA’s biodiversity branch, the numbers of legal bird hunters are increasing steadily, and it had become necessary to “compare hunters versus population”.

“In the proper management of any specie, once you are harvesting you need to have an idea of what the population is like,” Strong told the Sunday Observer at yesterday’s presentation entitled “The Game Birds Age Distribution and Migratory Ducks Surveys” at the New Chemistry Lecture Theatre, University of the West Indies.

The committee is expected to be formed by April and will comprise members of NEPA, BirdLife Jamaica and the University of the West Indies’ Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences.

Bird-shooting season is usually a six-week period which runs between the middle of August to late September. During that time, hunters are allowed to shoot only three game birds — the Bald Pate (Columbia Leucocephala); the White-winged Dove (Zenaida Asiatica); and the Long-tailed Pea Dove (Zenaida Macroura).

Hunters are normally given strict rules, for example, they should, at all times have their hunter’s licence in their possession when hunting. Hunting should not take place within the wildlife protective zones, which is 50 metres from the outer limit of game sanctuaries or reserves and is restricted to only Saturdays and Sundays.

The maximum bag limit is 20 per shoot and a maximum of 15 Bald Pate is allowed in any one shoot.

Failure to comply with such rules and regulations could attract a maximum fine of $100,000 or one year imprisonment.

There are currently over 1,350 licensed bird hunters in the island and is estimated that over 170,000 game birds where hunted last year. Both figures, according to NEPA’s Richard Nelson, show a steady increase since 1996.

The purpose of yesterday’s presentation, according to NEPA, was in response to public concerns about the shooting of mature birds that could result in a decline in their populations. It also served to quash a disagreement between hunters who are requesting a duck-shooting season and environmentalists who believe that such a move would endanger the endemic West Indian whistling duck.

But yesterday, Peter Vogel, a lecturer in the Department of Zoology at the Faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences at the UWI, said none of the island’s hunted species are threatened.

“The findings of our survey suggest that mainly the younger birds are being hunted and not the adults. Also, bird-shooting season does not coincide with the main nesting seasons so the adult birds are not normally around during that time,” he said.

He is, however, concerned about the increase in bird hunters and suggested that the monitoring programme starts quickly.

“Last year there was a doubling of birds shot and we do not know how much more loss the population can take. It can come to a breakpoint where the decline in population can be seen. Therefore, we should consider monitoring the situation to understand the birds better so we will be able to see the warning signs early enough to do something about it,” Vogel said.

On the matter of migratory ducks, Brandon Hay, a scientific officer at the Caribbean Coastal Area Management Foundation said Jamaica is only experiencing “part-time” increase in migratory duck population which is mainly due to loss of habitat because wetlands were being converted for housing and tourism development and other agricultural activities; pollution; and “disturbance” of the habitats by illegal hunters.

“The question is managing the habitats, that we have to do to enhance the attraction for these migratory ducks,” he said. “Caribbean islands such as Cuba that have better habitats are able to attract more birds.”

He added that another threat to the birds is disturbance of their habitats which is normally caused by illegal hunting. Locally, hunters are not allowed to shoot these ducks, but Hay said a small percentage are actually doing so.

“Sometimes there are good habitats but there are no ducks in them which is because they are being hunted illegally,” he noted.

Hay said if these problems are addressed, then NEPA could declare a duck hunting season but added: “We have to look at habitat management before all of this can be done.”

Yesterday’s presentation, according to one bird hunter, Robert Silvera, “provided some key information for bird hunters”.

“I got out of it that there are still other questions to be answered, but it is a start and that is important. We (environmentalists and bird hunters) also need to come together and address the matter of bird conservation to make it a more environmentally-friendly sport and a legacy for future generations,” he said.