How do people in the “Land of Hornbills” perceive Hornbills?
Sarawak is known as the “Land of Hornbills”, having the Rhinoceros Hornbill as the state emblem and with hornbills also being closely associated with important cultural symbols and beliefs among various local communities. However, up to date there is limited understanding on the perception, aware...
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| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Cambridge University Press
2021
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/36672/1/hornbills1.pdf http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/36672/ https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bird-conservation-international/article/abs/how-do-people-in-the-land-of-hornbills-perceive-hornbills/6ABBC2BD30A32BA1DDED58FCA0FE1149 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0959270921000381 |
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| Summary: | Sarawak is known as the “Land of Hornbills”, having the Rhinoceros Hornbill as the state emblem
and with hornbills also being closely associated with important cultural symbols and beliefs among
various local communities. However, up to date there is limited understanding on the perception,
awareness, and beliefs of local communities towards hornbills. This paper aims to describe the
aforementioned factors in western Sarawak, in hope of acquiring the socio-cultural information
needed to fill the gap, and to clarify misconceptions towards hornbill conservation efforts in
Sarawak. Data collection was accomplished using Open Data Kit (ODK). A total of 500 respondents
were approached in five administrative divisions in western Sarawak, namely Kuching, Samarahan, Serian, Sri Aman, and Betong. The questionnaire was carefully formulated to control
acquiescence bias that might arise. Boosted Regression Tree (BRT) modelling was conducted to
evaluate the strongest demographic predictor variables influencing the answers and word clouds
were used to visualise hornbill species by the local community. Sarawakians acknowledge the
importance of hornbills as a cultural symbol (95%) despite hornbills being used for food, medicine,
and decoration. Whilst this study describes the perceptions of hornbills in local communities, a
comprehensive assessment throughout Sarawak is recommended for better understanding of
hornbill importance in other communities. Such socio-cultural information is vital to ensure the
success of conservation efforts and for effective management strategies of hornbills within Sarawak. |
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