Fearing caterpillars, Malang bans bird hunting

MALANG, East Java: The Malang City administration is planning to fend off a feared caterpillar plague by issuing a municipal law banning the hunting of birds.

Mayor Peni Suparto said Tuesday that currently the only area where bird hunting was banned was Jl. Ijen.

“The new regulation would increase the area [in which bird hunting is banned]. One could not hunt birds in areas such as the alun-alun, Jl. Merdeka, Hutan Kota Malabar, Kota Malang and other protected areas,” he said, as quoted by kompas.com.

The recent surging caterpillar population began in East Java and has spread to a number areas including Kendal in Central Java and Malang. — J