The Social and Cultural Importance of Keeping Wild Birds as Pets in an Ethnic Community in Guiyang City, China

Abstract

Living with companion animals is widespread around the world. Wild birds are becoming increasingly popular as pets, potentially threatening the survival of many species of birds. Although keeping wild birds is illegal without permits in China it is a common practice. We conducted a study in an ethnic village in a suburban district of Guiyang city, China, to gain insights into the underlying motivations for this practice that can be used in the design of effective conservation strategies. Wild-caught birds were kept by 67.2% of village households. We interviewed 52 owners who kept a total of 269 wild birds. The popularity of wild birds as pets varies among species. We found that most keepers are middle-aged and elderly, so while enjoyment of bird fighting is a commonly cited motivation, we conclude that companionship is also important. We observed a significant correlation between the duration of bird ownership and age of the owners. Nearly half of our informants support the ban of bird-keeping, whereas the remainder expressed strong disagreement. Most informants dislike captive-bred birds because of concerns about their fighting ability, but bird-watching is popular. Our study highlights the urgent need for raising conservation awareness due to mistaken perceptions of the adverse effects of bird-keeping. Importantly, we argue that greater attention to the social requirements of the elderly might encourage bird watching in place of bird keeping. Our results also highlight the importance of incorporating the views of different stakeholders in the design and implementation of conservation management strategies.