The contrast between greed and stewardship surfaced anew with the Environment Department’s arrest of persons engaged in the capture and sale of birds.
Collectors believe they are co-owners of creation in a twisted way and keep high the demand for exotic bird species.
In their greed, they accumulate species that are in danger of being extinct, keeping them caged in private patios or private wildlife reservations.
So hunters continue about their business, conniving with middlemen and vendors like the ones caught last week for offering a captured Philippine Hawk Eagel for P6,000.
Caged birds don’t flourish as well as free ones. The more we keep birds as personal possessions, the less there are of them to lend beauty and enjoyment to the community and provide diversity to the biosphere.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources filed complaints for violation of the Wildlife Act against the two men who snared 11 birds, including a hawk eagle that later died.
This should be a lesson about consequences.
These feathered creatures were made to soar free. In untrained hands, they just suffer.
Illegal fowlers need to learn from this episode, too. Authorities do prosecute culprits in the bird trade. Strict law enforcement is needed to round up and punish bird catchers.
Already, the loss of habitats due to extensive deforestation and unchecked urbanization is robbing us of many bird species.
Also needed is an effective campaign to train more communities about the irreplaceable role of wild birds in the circle of life.
They are part of the balance in our dwindling forests, and play important roles in pest control, seed dispersion, and food production. When properly captured, bred and maintained in zoos they provide a glimpse of the majesty of Philippine wildlife for education purposes, recreation and tourism.
In a famous children’s story, a nightingale sang to heal a dying emperor. But this happened only after he had set the bird free instead of keeping it in his court.
Let’s not subject wild birds to man-made arrangements that only suffocate them. Let them be safe in their habitats, let them soar.
Let them be.