Dear Birders,

(Much apologies for cross posting)

This message may not be directly related to your birdwatching area, but
we certainly know that it will appeal to the very heart and compassion
of a bird lover, that is the sancity and respect for nature, found
either at your backyard or elsewhere in this only world we know.

For a good 15 years, a brave and dedicated Australian ornithologist, Dr
Richard Gregory-Smith have traversed to some of the wildest and untamed
parts of Asia to document checklists of birds. This particular area,
called Sarawak is one of the state of Malaysia, a country located in
South East Asia. His checklist contains one of the rarest and most
exotic collection ever compiled for Sarawak, and some of it include
regions which is considered as the "lost world" of Asia.

We believe every bird lovers will appreciate Richard's checklist for one

simple reason: that it document avian creatures in its most pristine and

undisturbed state, something many of us yearn for, but can only wish so.

For many years his collection have been kept unpublished, simply because

of the prohibitive costs involved.

However, with the advent of the internet, the publications of such
priceless materials is now possible. And through the effort of many
parties involved, it is now possible for you to view, for the the very
first time ever, Dr Richard Gregory-Smith's exotic online checklists of
the "Birds of Sarawak".

This web site however, has a deeper mission than to just present a rare
collection of birds.

It has something to do with the Asian financial crisis. You may be aware

that East Asia is currently immersed in financial chaos so sweeping and
deep that many organizations involved in nature conservation and
preservation of its rich biodiversity is dire lacking in funds. One such

project involves the Turtle Island Heritage Protected Area (TIHPA) off
the coast of Sabah (Malaysia) and the Philippines.

Scientists involved in research of marine turtles in this area have
discovered that if things are left as it is, by the year 2010, the
marine turtles plying in these areas will be extinct. The situation is
made more dire in these difficult times because on many islands off
Borneo the turtle eggs are still wantonly stolen or taken by the local
communities to be sold to earn more money. As such, conservation and
community educational programs are urgently and critically needed. With
the Asian financial crisis, however, funding for these purposes have
come to naught.

It is with this appeal that the "Birds of Sarawak" project was earmarked

as a SOS call to all bird lovers. The call is that by subscribing to
this rare and exotic collection, you'll not only be made aware of the
magnificient avian diversity found in a pristine and relatively
undisturbed part of the world, but your subscription will go a long way
in resolving an urgent call to save the sea turtles off the Sulu and
Celebes seas from extinction within this very generation.

You can call this as "a gift from the sky to heed a plea from the deep".

We've said as much as we can, and so we are profoundly pleased to
present for your viewership, for the first time ever, the world internet

premier of "Birds of Sarawak: A Digital Annotated Checklist". Please
click onto this site to go there:

http://www.cyberct.com.my/bos

Please note that your initial access allows you for a free 30 days
preview. Should you wish to own access for continued viewership for two
years uninterrupted, you'll need to subscribe to this webshare for a one

off fee of only US$ 10.00. As stated above, part of the fees will go to
the conservation and educational effort urgently required by the TIHPA.

Should you have problems accessing this webshare, please contact the
webmaster (limster at pop.jaring.my). For more information on this
webshare, please go to the URL stated above.

If you believe this webshare is worthy of its cause, please feel free to

pass it on to your friends. Thank you for your support and enjoy the
show!


Yours sincerely,

Ornithologists and Producers of "Birds of Sarawak"
Scientists and turtle conservationists at TIHPA