Jakarta. Maluku’s Natural Resources Conservation Agency and the Wildlife Conservation Society-Indonesia Program (WCS-IP) released 117 rare birds back to their natural habitat in the South Halmahera district in North Maluku on Thursday (15/12).

The birds — 40 white cockatoos (Cacatua alba), 28 Eclectus parrots (Eclectus roratus) and 49 Ternate chattering lories (Lorius garrulus) — were initially under the custody of the conservation agency to protect them against poachers.

"But the birds need to be released eventually to preserve the ecosystem. We have to restore or even increase the population of these three bird species," Ternate conservation agency head Lilian Komaling said in a statement.

With the help of the Indonesia Institute of Sciences (LIPI), the released birds have been tagged with a ring to monitor their movement.

The parrots had gone through a series of health tests and a long rehabilitation and habituation process to ensure their survival in the wild and minimize the chance of spreading diseases to other wildlife.

There are 56 other parrots in the rehabilitation stage at the Ternate shelter, still waiting for their release.

Endemic to Indonesia, the birds are also listed in the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Endangered Animals, with the white cockatoos categorized as "endangered," Eclectus parrots as "vulnerable" and Ternate chattering lories as "least concerned."

The WCS-IP has warned the populations of the birds might dwindle even further due to the high number of illegal trade and poaching of birds, especially in eastern Indonesia.

"The birds are not just for sale in the domestic market, but also sold in foreign countries. The main trade route, that we know of, goes to the Philippines through ports in North Sulawesi and North Maluku," WCS-IP Wildlife Trade Program Manager Dwi Adhiasto said.

Dwi said some rare birds can be traded legally in the international market but under strict regulations, and as the Indonesian government has set a zero quota for bird exports, all bird sales from Indonesia are illegal.

This year, North Maluku Water Police caught a man trying to smuggle 56 white cockatoos, 159 Eclectus parrots, 3 Ternate chattering lorries and 1 lorikeet out of Indonesia. The man is now in custody and faces a possible 8-year prison sentence and a fine of up to Rp 10 million.