Sally Furniss
New member
Flu fears force ban on bird hunting
By DEXTER SEE
November 28, 2010, 5:09pm
SAGADA, Mountain Province, Philippines ? Local officials in this mountain resort town reiterated the banning of ?ikik? or bird hunting to avoid catching foreign birds that might be carriers of the dreaded bird flu virus that could seriously affect the health condition of people who catch and eat the supposed contaminated birds coming from the colder parts of China and other parts of the world.
The strict banning of the catching of birds came in the wake of reports of a case of bird flu in Hong Kong, which is the path of the foreign birds in coming to various parts of the country in order to escape from the extreme cold in their places of origin.
Health authorities said the bird flu or avian influenza virus does not only infect birds or the fowl industry but could also infect humans causing fatal illnesses and death.
Municipal officials said measures are in place to prevent the possible entry of the bird flu virus by infected migratory birds coming to Sagada. Records show there is an existing ordinance prohibiting all forms of bird hunting particularly ?ikik? in the municipality.
They added that barangay officials and some women groups in south central Sagada are helping each other in preventing some insistent bird hunters in their ?ikik? activities in nearby Mount Ampakao.
In Mountain Province, Mt. Ampakao in Sagada and some mountains in Barlig and Bauko have been identified by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources as passage ways or stopover sites of migratory birds that get out from their countries of origin to escape the severe winter and scarcity of food.
Local residents however observed that there are few bird hunters these days as people could easily buy their fowl supplies in nearby market. According to them, those who insist of going ?ikik? are doing it just for fun.
?Ikik? is a bird hunting practice of bird hunters usually done in the cold months of the year during the exodus of migratory birds from other countries.
To trap the birds, the hunters put on their lanterns or build a fire in the evening on a mountain ridge. Birds are attracted to the light. When the birds draw near the light, a net is hurled catching the birds.
Meanwhile, DENR and other concerned offices are on tight watch over pet and cage birds being transported at all entry points such as airports and seaports to check if they are bird flu free and also conduct surveillance of migratory bird sites to prevent the possible transmission of bird flu into the country.
During the early 1980s, local residents were able to catch various varieties of birds which are not found in the country. Some of the caught bires are even butchered and eaten by the bird hunters instead of being taken cared of. Foreign species of birds are attracted to pass through the town because of the warmer weather condition compared to the prevailing winter condition in their respective places of origin.
http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/289944/flu-fears-force-ban-bird-hunting
By DEXTER SEE
November 28, 2010, 5:09pm
SAGADA, Mountain Province, Philippines ? Local officials in this mountain resort town reiterated the banning of ?ikik? or bird hunting to avoid catching foreign birds that might be carriers of the dreaded bird flu virus that could seriously affect the health condition of people who catch and eat the supposed contaminated birds coming from the colder parts of China and other parts of the world.
The strict banning of the catching of birds came in the wake of reports of a case of bird flu in Hong Kong, which is the path of the foreign birds in coming to various parts of the country in order to escape from the extreme cold in their places of origin.
Health authorities said the bird flu or avian influenza virus does not only infect birds or the fowl industry but could also infect humans causing fatal illnesses and death.
Municipal officials said measures are in place to prevent the possible entry of the bird flu virus by infected migratory birds coming to Sagada. Records show there is an existing ordinance prohibiting all forms of bird hunting particularly ?ikik? in the municipality.
They added that barangay officials and some women groups in south central Sagada are helping each other in preventing some insistent bird hunters in their ?ikik? activities in nearby Mount Ampakao.
In Mountain Province, Mt. Ampakao in Sagada and some mountains in Barlig and Bauko have been identified by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources as passage ways or stopover sites of migratory birds that get out from their countries of origin to escape the severe winter and scarcity of food.
Local residents however observed that there are few bird hunters these days as people could easily buy their fowl supplies in nearby market. According to them, those who insist of going ?ikik? are doing it just for fun.
?Ikik? is a bird hunting practice of bird hunters usually done in the cold months of the year during the exodus of migratory birds from other countries.
To trap the birds, the hunters put on their lanterns or build a fire in the evening on a mountain ridge. Birds are attracted to the light. When the birds draw near the light, a net is hurled catching the birds.
Meanwhile, DENR and other concerned offices are on tight watch over pet and cage birds being transported at all entry points such as airports and seaports to check if they are bird flu free and also conduct surveillance of migratory bird sites to prevent the possible transmission of bird flu into the country.
During the early 1980s, local residents were able to catch various varieties of birds which are not found in the country. Some of the caught bires are even butchered and eaten by the bird hunters instead of being taken cared of. Foreign species of birds are attracted to pass through the town because of the warmer weather condition compared to the prevailing winter condition in their respective places of origin.
http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/289944/flu-fears-force-ban-bird-hunting