HORNBILLS BUCEROS SPP AND CULTURE IN NORTHERN BORNEO - CAN THEY CONTINUE TO COEXIST

Helmeted Buceros vigil and rhinoceros B. rhinoceros hornbills are larg e, conspicuous birds in the forests of northern Borneo. Both are of en ormous importance in local culture, being the subject of legends, cere monies and beliefs. Tail feathers of both species are used in traditio nal costumes and dancing. Both are also hunted for their meat. Changes in access, technology and rural lifestyles mean that hunting is causi ng populations to decline or become locally extinct. The birds breed s lowly and occur at low natural densities. Thus, hunting levels must be extremely low to be sustainable. A single team of traditional dancers uses about 400 rhinoceros hornbill feathers, which involves killing 4 0 birds. To hunt these sustainably, and to re-supply new feathers ever y five years, about 205 km(2) of forest is needed. Hunting levels curr ently exceed this in almost all forests in northern Borneo. A series o f measures is needed to ensure that these birds survive in Borneo's fo rests, and not just in legend and in the form of a few decaying artefa cts. (C) 1997 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.