James Eaton

Birdtour Asia Limited

Owls are popular pets in Japan, with the country being the largest importer of live owls in the world. Although several studies have looked at the welfare implications of the country’s “owl cafés,” the scale and scope of the Japanese owl trade, and its potential consequences for conservation, remain largely unexplored. Here we present an overview o...

Citizen science data are increasingly employed inornithological study and have recently been used to great effect in Asia to clarify species distributions (e.g. Squires et al. 2021, SoIB 2023), identify sitesof conservation importance (e.g. Tang et al. 2023)and elucidate taxonomic limits (e.g. Baveja et al.2020, Berryman et al. 2023). In particular...

During a recreational birding trip to the Meratus Mountains in July 2016, four observers, including JAE, discovered several undescribed taxa (Eaton et al. 2016), three of which have subsequently been described, an Alophoixus bulbul (described as a subspecies: Shakya et al. 2020, see Plates 1–2 and caption) and a Cyornis flycatcher and Zosterops whi...

The White-eared Night Heron Gorsachius magnificus is anocturnal, poorly-known, globally Endangered species, primarilyoccurring in southern China, and northern Vietnam, wherebreeding has been confirmed in recent times (Pilgrim et al.2009; Le 2015; Martínez-Vilalta et al. 2020). Populations of thespecies are believed to be declining for many years ow...

European Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) is being reported from Chitral. This is the first record for KPK province and a rediscovery from Pakistan and South Asia after 93 years.

There are few remaining species in the Oriental region yet to have been documented by a sound recording or photograph. Those that do remain are often taxa that have not been seen for decades due to their remoteness on a far-flung Indonesian or Philippine island, or due to their genuine rarity and absence for a century or more. As part of the recent...

The common paradise-kingfisher, Tanysiptera galatea, species complex comprises 19 taxa distributed across New Guinea and Wallacea. Owing to its highly conserved morphological features, the lineage has been taxonomically confused, with 15 similar-plumaged taxa currently treated as conspecific. To shed light on species limits, we analysed eight bioac...

Although Blakiston’s Fish Owl (Bubo blakistoni) is widely treated as a single species, marked differences in the structure of pair duets between continental and insular populations have been documented. However, no study has quantitatively assessed these vocal differences. We obtained 192 duets from 22 pairs of Blakiston’s Fish Owl: 15 pairs of B....

Monitoring illegal wildlife trade and how the modus operandi of traders changes over time is of vital importance to mitigate the negative effects this trade can have on wild populations. We focused on the trade of birds of prey in Indonesia (2016–2021) in bird markets (12 markets, 194 visits), on Instagram (19 seller profiles) and on Facebook (11 o...

We describe two new bird species from the Meratus Mountains of southeastern Borneo, Indonesia: a jungle-flycatcher (genus Cyornis) and a white-eye (genus Zosterops). Our descriptions are based on comparisons of plumage, mitochondrial ND2 DNA sequences, and vocalizations of the new species and their congeners. The new Meratus jungle-flycatcher is mo...

The region comprises over 17,000 islands stretching in an arc along the Equator over almost 5,000 km, but occupies only around 1% of the world’s land surface. It is amongst the most biodiverse regions on Earth, but remains one of the least studied. The birds found in the Indonesian archipelago represent approximately 13% of all the world’s describe...

The Sulawesi Subregion was traditionally thought to be home to a single, resident Phylloscopusleaf warbler. However, recent exploration has revealed an additional three species, two of which have only very recently been described: Taliabu Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus emilsalimi and Peleng Leaf Warbler P. suaramerdu from the outlying islands of Taliabu...

This 381-paged book covers the biology, ecology, impact and management of 34 common alien invasive species, with reviews on the history and context of avian introductions and invasions in five major regions (Oceania, Africa, Europe (including the Middle East, Asia and South America)), as well as management challenges and the potential of citizen sc...

The Elegant Pitta (Pitta elegans) complex displays a remarkable diversity of morphological and bio-acoustic traits across five taxa currently recognized as subspecies. They differ in plumage characteristics (such as red versus black belly patches; supercilium color and extent; and white versus black throats), in lifestyle (resident versus migratory...

Deforestation is a major threat to biodiversity, particularly within tropical forest habitats. Some of the fastest diminishing tropical forest habitats in the world occur in Indonesia, where fragmentation is severely impacting biodiversity, including on the island of Java, which holds many endemic species. Extreme fragmentation on the western part...

Results of the first published bird surveys from the Mekongga Mountains, Sulawesi, Indonesia, in December 2018 and January 2020. We detail seven elevation extensions, and also document range extensions in Cinnabar Boobook Ninox ios, and a potentially novel taxon of Locustella grasshopper warbler.

The White Wagtail Motacilla alba is a common winter visitor and passage migrant to most of mainland South-East Asia (Robson 2008). Although long known as a regular passage migrant to northern Borneo (Smythies 1957), a scarce winter visitor to the Malay Peninsula including Singapore (Medway & Wells 1976), and a rare to locally common winter visitor...

Southeast Asian avifauna is under threat from both habitat loss and illegal poaching, yet the region’s rich biodiversity remains understudied. Here, we uncover cryptic species-level diversity in the Sunda Blue Robin (Myiomela diana), a songbird complex endemic to Javan (subspecies diana) and Sumatran (subspecies sumatrana) mountains. Taxonomic inqu...

The Straw-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus zeylanicus has experienced marked population declines and extirpations due to unsustainable trade and habitat loss across South-East Asia. As a result, the species has been uplisted from Endangered to Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List within a short span of two years. To ascertain the extent of its region...

Background The taxonomy of the Collared Owlet ( Glaucidium brodiei ) species complex is confused owing to great individual variation in plumage colouration seemingly unrelated to their distribution. Although generally recognised as a single species, vocal differences among the subspecies have been noted by field recordists. However, there is no stu...

Owing to its remarkable singing ability, the White-rumped Shama (Kittacincla malabarica) is a particularly popular species in the SouthEast Asian cage-bird trade. Despite domestic trade being regulated in six out of nine SouthEast Asian range states, demand continues to put a heavy strain on the region's White-rumped Shama populations. The lack of...

This paper is the first known complete inventory of birds sold in two of the largest bird markets in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia. Two inventories were compiled one year apart, in 2017 and 2018. A total of 5,228 individuals of 129 species were recorded in 2017 and 7,258 individuals of 144 species in 2018, including eight threatened species, seven in b...

Following the publication of Eaton et al. (2016) and subsequently del Hoyo & Collar (2016), significant changes in the taxonomy of a number of Indonesian passerines have taken place, with several species complexes separated into individual species-level lineages on the basis of new biological information. Because several of the changes first appear...

Despite the ongoing taxonomic revolution incorporating multiple species delimitation methods, knowledge gaps persist in the taxonomy of comparatively well-studied animal groups such as birds. Morphologically cryptic species risk slipping under the conservation radar, as they get mistakenly united with other species. Here, we employed six to 11 voca...

The Cream-throated White-eye Zosterops atriceps complex from the Northern Moluccas comprises three described subspecies and an undescribed population, and is one that has been associated with taxonomic upheaval in the last few years. Its cream-white throat colouration is rather unusual (albeit not unique) in this typically yellow-throated genus. On...

Hierococcyx hawk cuckoos are known to vocalise mainly on their breeding grounds, making identification there a relatively straightforward matter, particularly as they are largely allopatric. However, when silent individuals are observed at other times of the year, these cuckoos can become one of Asia’s most difficult identification puzzles, with th...

The Lesser Sundas Region continues to be widely unexplored even in such relatively well-known animal groups as birds (Aves). We report the results of an ornithological expedition from November through December 2015 to Timor, Alor and Rote islands along with some opportunistic observations made in that area between 2006 to 2015, providing details on...

Background: The White-browed Shortwing (Brachypteryx montana) is widespread from the central Himalayas to the southeast Chinese mainland and the island of Taiwan, the Philippines and Indonesia. Multiple subspecies are recog- nised, and several of these have recently been suggested to be treated as separate species based on differences in morphology...

Owing to its remarkable singing ability, the White-rumped Shama Kittacincla malabarica is a particularly popular species in the South-EastAsian cage-bird trade. Despite domestic trade being regulated in six out of nine South-East Asian range states, demand continues to put aheavy strain on the region’s White-rumped Shama populations. The lack of in...

Currently listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the Straw-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus zeylanicus is being driven towards extinction throughout most of its range by unregulated illegal trade supplying the demand for songbirds. We conducted surveys of bird markets in North and West Kalimantan, and Central, West and East Java b...

White-bellied swiftlets of the Collocalia esculenta complex constitute a radiation of colony-breeding swifts distributed throughout the tropical Indo-Pacific region. Resolution of their taxonomy is challenging due to their morphological uniformity. To analyze the evolutionary history of this complex, we combine new biometric measurements and result...

From 7–10 July 2016 we visited the central part of the Meratus range between Kadayangvillage (2.747°S 115.555°E) at 500 m, and the 1,892 m summit of Gn Besar (2.712°S 115.625°E).The habitat between 500 and 700 m was largelycinnamon and rubber plantations, gradually givingway to degraded forest with much recent andongoing logging activity, until it...

In ad hoc survey inventories of eight major bird markets in Java in 2014 and 2015, 615 individuals from nine species of the Garrulax genus were found for sale. The most numerous species was Sunda Laughingthrush Garrulax palliatus (215 individuals), followed by Chinese Hwamei G. canorus and Chestnut-capped Laughingthrush G. mitratus . Prices collect...

The flat-headed cat Prionailurus planiceps is classified as one of the most threatened cat species in the world. Its range is restricted to southern Thailand, peninsular Malaysia and the two largest Sunda Islands, Borneo and Sumatra. Its association with wetlands and lowland areas puts great pressure on this species, because these habitats are most...

The Bornean ferret badger Melogale everetti is one of the least known Bornean carnivores, and is currently classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Endemic to Borneo, it is associated with upland and highland forests in and around Kinabalu Park and Crocker Range Park. Of 52 Bornean ferret badger occurrence records, 1...

Short-tailed mongoose Herpestes brachyurus is known to inhabit Borneo, Sumatra and peninsular Malaysia. Locality records show that it is widespread and probably common in at least the northern half of Borneo. Records are much sparser south of 2°N. It occurs in forest and, to a poorly clarified extent, non-forest habitats. Eighty-six spatially preci...

Little is known about the ecology of the rare marbled cat Pardofelis marmorata on Borneo. In addition, the little information that is available on the species often comes from incidental sightings. Here we use the MaxEnt algorithm to produce a habitat suitability map for this species based on a compilation of existing data. We collected 105 marbled...

The masked palm civet Paguma larvata is a small carnivore within the civet family Viverridae, currently listed as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Across its global range the masked palm civet uses a range of habitats in tropical and subtropical regions, from lowlands to highlands, but its exact ecological requirements and...

The Sunda stink-badger Mydaus javanensis is a small carnivore inhabiting the South-east Asian islands of Java, Sumatra, Borneo and Natuna Islands. It occurs in a wide variety of vegetation types and is presently listed by The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as Least Concern. We analysed 15 (Balanced Model) or 77 (Spatial Filtering Model) locati...

Small-toothed palm civet Arctogalidia trivirgata occurs widely across Borneo. Eighty-two spatially precise records were used to model its distribution on the island. While the model predicts some regions of low suitability, the scatter of records (mostly insufficiently spatially precise for use in the model) within them and the generally low releva...

The characterization of species limits and diversification patterns across the geographically complex Indo-Pacific region has presented biogeographers and evolutionary biologists with great challenges. In the present study, we investigated the brown cuckoo dove (Macropygia amboinensis s.l.) species complex, whose distribution spans this entire regi...

The Sunda stink-badger Mydaus javanensis is a small carnivore inhabiting the Southeast Asian islands of Java, Sumatra, Borneo and Natuna Islands. It occurs in a wide variety of vegetation types and is presently listed by The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as Least Concern. We analysed 15 (Balanced Model) or 77 (Spatial Filtering Model) locatio...

The flat-headed cat Prionailurus planiceps is classified as one of the most threatened cat species in the world. Its range is restricted to southern Thailand, peninsular Malaysia and the two largest Sunda Islands, Borneo and Sumatra. Its association with wetlands and lowland areas puts great pressure on this species, because these habitats are most...

Commercial trade, almost always for pets, represents a major threat to bird species and subspecies in Sumatra, Kalimantan, Java and Bali, Indonesia. Thirteen species—Silvery Woodpigeon Columba argentina, Javan Hawk-eagle Nisaetus bartelsi, Helmeted Hornbill Rhinoplax vigil, Yellow-crested Cockatoo Cacatua sulphurea, Scarlet-breasted Lorikeet Tricho...

The Critically Endangered Black-winged Myna Acridotheres melanopterus is being pushed towards the brink of extinction in Indonesia due to continued demand for it as a cage bird and the lack of enforcement of national laws set in place to protect it. The trade in this species is largely to supply domestic demand, although an unknown level of interna...

Responses of biodiversity to changes in both land cover and climate are recognized [ 1 ] but still poorly understood [ 2 ]. This poses significant challenges for spatial planning as species could shift, contract, expand, or maintain their range inside or outside protected areas [ 2–4 ]. We examine this problem in Borneo, a global biodiversity hotsp...

Four Mentawai Palm Civets Paradoxurus (hermaphroditus) lignicolor were spotlit and photographed at Bebe, in the north-east corner of Siberut, on the night of 28 February 2014, an area of several square kilometers of plantations mixed with remnant forest patches. This is one of few recent published observations of the taxon, which remains too little...