The Rufous-backed Bunting – Emberiza jankowskii - was once common on
grassland with scattered Siberian apricot scrub across North East China,
to Russia and North Korea. But because of conversion of its breeding habitat to
farmland, by the late 1990s it was assessed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.
This little-known
passerine continued to decline at an even more rapid rate, and was uplisted to
Endangered in 2010; making it Asia’s rarest
bunting. It is now known to exist only at a few pockets of shrubby grassland
along the border between Jilin Province and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in China.
Prof Wang Haitao
from the North-east Normal University,
Changchun, Jilin Province, gives an estimated
population of about 250 birds for all known sites. Although some populations
may remain to be discovered, very few have been recorded during extensive
ornithological surveys by the Beijing Bird Watching Society (aided by the
Oriental Bird Club, the BirdLife International China Programme and the RSPB,
BirdLife in the UK)
and other survey teams.
One of the last
known populations is at Tumuji National Nature Reserve in eastern Inner Mongolia, which was established for conservation of
the Great Bustard Otis tarda in 1996; with support from BirdLife Partner the
Wild Bird Society of Japan. The lands were already leased to private
entrepreneurs, which makes law enforcement and conservation complicated.
Livestock grazing and forage harvesting during the breeding season have not yet
been totally controlled, even in core areas of the reserve.
BirdLife
International organised the first conservation workshop at Tumuji in June,
2012, inviting relevant conservation and research organisations in China to
discuss an emergency plan to save this species. Officials from the Ke’erqin (or
Horqin) National Nature Reserve, also in eastern Inner
Mongolia, were invited, because of the recent discovery of a
population of buntings on leased grassland nearby.
The workshop
agreed a communication network to be established among conservation
organisations, researchers and reserve managers, for monitoring and new
discoveries. As this is a little-known species that enjoys very limited
protection in China,
education material such as posters and booklets targeting the general public
and government officers will be published by mid-2013. Surveys for unknown
populations will continue at sites with suitable habitats.
Perhaps the
biggest challenge is protection and management of the sites where the bunting
still exists, including restoration of the Siberian apricot shrub habitat. This
will require greater support from local governments. A conservation
action plan must be drafted, and more financial support secured.
But there is
already some good news. At the site visit to Ke’erqin National Nature Reserve,
Mr Wang Tiejun, a land leaser, announced that he was willing to give up
his benefits and preserve the apricot scrub for the Rufous-backed Bunting,
after learning of the importance of this species.
“With a better
awareness and education programme, we hope more people will be joining Mr
Wang”, said Simba Chan, BirdLife’s Conservation Officer in Asia.
Rufous-backed
Bunting
The Rufous-backed
Bunting (Emberiza jankowskii) is a species of bird which is
found in China, North Korea and Russia. This bunting’s habitat is
open areas with sparse grass, bushes in the lowlands. They breed in a variety
of open habitats at low altitudes usually grassland with scattered scrub or
small trees on a sandy substrate, within a narrow semi-humid transitional zone
between the Manchurian deciduous forest and Mongolian steppe-vegetation zones.
Description
A rufous bunting
with bold head pattern and mantle streaks and pale underparts. Grey
ear-coverts, centre of breast and white wing-bars. Male has oval blackish-chestnut
belly patch. Non-breeding male has more obscured belly patch and duller, more
heavily streaked upperparts.
Call
Song is a simple chu-chu cha-cha cheee or hsuii dzja dzja dzjeee. Calls
include single or double tsitt,
thin hsiu and
explosive sstlitt
when alarmed.
Breeding
They breed in
extreme north-eastern North Korea and in Heilongjiang, Inner Mongolia and
Jilin, China. It breeds in a variety of open habitats at low altitudes, usually
grassland with scattered scrub. The breeding season extends from late April to
late July. The clutch size ranges from four to seven eggs, with an incubation
period of 11-14 days, followed by a nestling period of 10-13 days.
Conservation Status – Endangered
This species is
classified as Endangered as it is undergoing a very rapid population decline,
perhaps primarily owing to conversion of its grassland habitat for agriculture,
pasture and forestry. It is threatened by habitat loss.
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