Wak Gatak is a sister organisation to Planet Indonesia which is aiming to reverse the negative impacts of wildlife trafficking on biodiversity and society.
The Problem
Indonesian songbirds face a particularly grave threat rooted in cultural demand for wild caught passerines, often used as a mark of manhood and in widespread songbird competitions. The size and the gravity of the trade are colossal. Every poacher approximately catches 20 to 25 birds per day, the vast majority often dying due to diseases and stress before they even reach the market. The insufficient hygienic measures and inadequate facilities means these markets carry the potential to spread highly infectious zoonotic diseases. Thus posing a risk to humans, domestic animals and wild wildlife that come into contact with the captured infected individuals or its environments.
Our solution
As we dismantle the different levels of trade chains through partner organisations, the existing thousands of individual songbird victims of the IWT need to be cared for.
As the first Songbird Rescue and Rehab Centre, Wak Gatak will provide the mechanisms to safeguard rescued songbird’s well-being and where possible rehabilitate them for release back into their natural habitats.
This is an opportunity to protect these iconic and environmentally important birds, give them back their freedom and a chance to restore their diminishing populations and ecosystems.
The EAZA Silent Forest Group have supported the construction of the clinic building of the Wak Gatak Songbird Rescue and Rehab Centre in Kalimantan, Indonesia.
PROJECT UPDATE:
January 2022: WakGatak_Final Report 2021
September 2021: Q3 Update Wak Gatak
May 2021: Q2 Update WakGatak
February 2021: Q1 Update WakGatak
October 2020: Initial TimeFrame Update