Introducing the 

Biak Falconry and Raptors Conservation Center (BFRCC)

 
Founded in August 1998 by a team of dedicated nationals in co-operation with the Government of the Irian Jaya Province and with Belgian expertise, our Center has already proved to rapidly become a very effective and promising conservation tool.
Primarily aimed by the Government of Biak-Numfor District as an innovative attraction within its tourism development program, the BFRCC is also most actively developing Raptors breeding.

Today, the BFRCC is proud to house the world's best assemblage of Asian species and already maintains several breeding pairs.

 

The BFRCC works in five directions:

1

 Extensive and adapted breeding premises have been built. Current capacity meets all requirements for more than 25 pairs of large Eagles. All the BFRCC birds being under constant expert monitoring, parents can be easily selected and several pairs have already started mating.
2 First-hand field-data collection (behavior and pathology) is increasing our scientific knowledge about the largely understudied Indonesian Raptors.  
3 Great care is paid to a sensible selection of local employees, a prerequisite to educate and train proficient staff on a long-term base.

The BFRCC breed laboratory rats, mice, quails and pigeons for raptors' food, therefore actively teaching the basics of modern breeding to local employees. Two of them already turned this production into a small home-industry and currently produce an additional family income from the sale of quail eggs.

4 One third of the birds are trained for falconry, a very valuable tourism attraction expected to benefit to regional development on the medium term. The product gained from the sale of Falconry packages is meant to back up the Center’s breeding and operational costs.
5 Information, brochures and leaflets are periodically released to increase public awareness locally on conservation issues related to Birds of Prey.

The BFRCC Center is actively visited by Biak people, thus greatly contributing to build up sound bases for the future of conservation in the area.

            Download our Y-2000 progress report (350K)

Translated from the BFRCC report in Bahasa Indonesia for the
 sponsoring authority and pointing out all positive achievements
as well as technical and organisational problems encountered during one year.

 

The BFRCC is reaching a triple goal:
  • education through information campaign and sound research
  • regional development through nature tourism and creation of new employment
  • conservation through its modern breeding program

A bright example of upright utilization of non-endangered, common Raptors being turned into a sound resource to develop a captive bred stock of other species now so dramatically threatened in the wild by human ignorance, habitat destruction and avian diseases!