Photo: Mike Baird

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©Joseph Tobias

According to Lane et al. 2007 “Mechanical noises have been noted in both species of Cnipodectes. Hilty and Brown (1986: 483) note that C. subbrunneus "can produce a very audible pr’r'r’r'r’r’ in flight with wings." This description is similar to mechanical sounds T.V.H. witnessed, performed by C. superrufus at Kirigueti. In response to playback, Valqui observed the bird approaching aggressively, making an accelerating and decelerating buzzing noise, while flying -4 m off the ground. Although it was not clear what the source of the sound was, it seems likely that it was mechanical and produced by the wings”

You can listen the sound here.

The Government of Colombia announced last night that it was creating a new national park at the request of the local indigenous community. This is a major step forward in the complicated relationship between conservationists and indigenous groups.

Black Curassow

The Yaigojé Apaporis Park – was created to safeguard an area of more than 1,056,523 hectares (about 2,610,725 acres) of forest at the intersection of the Amazon Basin and the Guiana Shield, and will be managed by the indigenous groups who inhabit the Connecticut-sized area.

The area – which straddles the banks of the Caquetá River and its tributary, the Apaporis River – is home to the Tanimuka,  Letuama, Makuna, Yuhup, Barasano, Itana, Eduria and Tatuyo ethnic groups, and was previously classified as an indigenous reserve. However, this status – under existing Colombian legislation – did not provide the communities with the power to protect their land when a Canadian gold-mining company began prospecting in the area two years ago.

So the communities looked to a solution that would increase their rights to oversee the future of the land – the creation of a national park. They worked with Conservation International and the Gaia Amazonas Foundation to appeal to the country’s National Parks Unit to better protect the region’s resources.

Fabio Arjona, Executive Director of Conservation International in Colombia said: “The announcement is a hugely significant step forward for conservation, both globally and in Colombia. It has helped to break-down barriers that have existed between conservation and indigenous groups – who initially resisted efforts to increase protection in their forests because of concerns that it would reduce their ability to manage the lands as they wish to. But in creating this new park we have worked together to create an area that protects both the rights of indigenous people and this hugely important area of forest.”

The area’s lowland forests have great biodiversity and shelter unique and threatened species such as the Black Curassow (Crax alector), the brown wooly monkey (Lagothrix lagotricha) and the endemic Apaporis river caiman  (Caiman crocodilus apaporiensis).

www.conservation.org

Photo: ©XKD

Distribution: Resident breeder from western Panama and Trinidad south through most of South America east of the Andes; in marshes and shallow lakes.

Conservation status: Least Concern.

Wattled Jacana 

South American Painted-Snipe (Nycticryphes semicollaris)

Distribution: Southern Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay to Chile and Argentina. It inhabits lowland freshwater wetlands, including wet grasslands.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Photo

South American Snipe (Gallinago paraguaiae)

Distribution: Breeds in most of South America away from the Pacific coast and eastern Brazil, and also the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), Trinidad and possibly Tobago. The nominate lowland race G. p. paraguaiae is resident, but southern G. p. magellanicae migrates north in winter, abandoning Tierra del Fuego altogether, and the Andean G. p. andina moves to lower ground; in wet grassy savannah, peat bogs and boggy rivers.

Conservation status: Least Concern

South American Snipe ©Cláudio Dias Timm

Puna Snipe (Gallinago andina)

Distribution: Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Bolivia and Argentina; in bogs, marshes, and edges of lakes at 3000-4000 m.

Conservation status: Least concern

Photo

Noble Snipe (Gallinago nobilis)

Distribution: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela above or just below the treeline.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Noble Snipe ©Robert Scanlon

Giant Snipe (Gallinago undulata)

Distribution: nominate subspecies G. u. undulata occurs in two distinct areas, one in Colombia, and the other from Venezuela through Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana to extreme north-eastern Brazil. The southern subspecies G. u. gigantea is found in eastern Bolivia, eastern Paraguay and south-east Brazil, and probably also in Uruguay and north-eastern Argentina, in tall vegetation in swamps and flooded grasslands, and occasionally in dry savannah.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Gigant Snipe ©Lee Dingain

Fuegian Snipe (Gallinago stricklandii)

Distribution: Breeds in south-central Chile and Argentina south to Tierra del Fuego. It is mainly sedentary, but the Tierra del Fuego population winters in mainland Chile; found in grassy and forested boggy areas with low scrub or bushes; at altitudes ranging from 4200 m in the north of its distribution, down to nearly sea level in Tierra del Fuego.

Conservation status: Near threatened

Photo

Andean Snipe (Gallinago jamesoni)

Distribution: Andes in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. It appears to be entirely sedentary, with no evidence of migration; in marshy areas where grassland and forest intergrades, at altitudes ranging between 2100 – 3800 m

Conservation status: Least Concern

Imperial Snipe (Gallinago imperialis)

Distribution: Peru, Ecuador and Colombia; in elfin forest around the tree line between 2750-3500 m.

Conservation status: Near Threatened

Rufous-bellied Seedsnipe (Attagis gayi)

Distribution: Andes of Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina between 4000-5000 m.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Photo

White-bellied Seedsnipe (Attagis malouinus)

Distribution: southern parts of Argentina and Chile and is a vagrant to the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); in temperate grassland and swamps.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Photo

Gray-breasted Seedsnipe (Thinocorus orbignyianus)

Distribution: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru; in temperate grassland, subtropical or tropical high-altitude grassland and swamps.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Gray-breasted Seedsnipe ©Pablo Caceres Contreras

Least Seedsnipe (Thinocorus rumicivorus)

Distribution: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Peru and has been recorded in Ecuador, the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), Uruguay and possibly Brazil; in temperate grassland, subtropical or tropical high-altitude grassland, and pastureland.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Least Seedsnipe ©Pablo Caceres Contreras

Snowy Sheathbill (Chionis albus)

Distribution: Breeds on the Antarctic Peninsula, and along the Scotia Arc on the South Shetland Islands, Elephant Island, the South Orkney Islands and South Georgia (Georgia del Sur) and the South Sandwich Islands (Islas Sandwich del Sur) and non-breeding migrant to the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), Tierra del Fuego (Chile and Argentina);

Conservation status: Least Concern

Snowy Sheathbill ©David M. Jensen

All photos under Creative Commons License

The Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act, passed by the U.S. Congress in 2000, establishes a matching grants program to fund projects that promote the conservation of migratory birds in the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

The grants program began supporting projects in 2002, when it received its first appropriation in the amount of $3 million. Funding for the program was $4.5 million in 2008. At least 75 percent of the total funding available for grants each fiscal year is to be used to support projects outside the USA.

Between 2002 and 2008, the program supported 260 projects, coordinated by partners in 48 U.S. states/territories and 36 countries. More than $25.5 million from NMBCA grants have leveraged about $116.5 million in matching funds and $6.1 million in nonmatching funds. Projects involving land conservation have affected about 1.9 million acres of bird habitat.

There is a proposal to increase funding for this program, please support this initiative by sending a message to your Representative and Senators here.

Photo: Blackburnian Warbler, Credit: Michael under Creative Commons License 2.0

It’s a little known fact that there is a group of shorebirds that live and migrate only between Central and South America. They are called Endemic Neotropical Shorebirds. The Neotropics contains 27 endemic shorebird species, and two endemic families, the Seed-snipes (Thinocoridae) and the monospecific family of the Magellanic Plover (Pluvianellidae). Unlike Neartic migratory shorebirds, the Neotropical shorebirds are little known, since many live in remote and inaccessible areas.

In this first part of this post I will talk about 13 of these 27 shorebirds and in the second part I will write about the rest.

Peruvian Thick-knee (Burhinus superciliaris)

Distribution: Ecuador, Peru, Chile; mainly in desert scrub and agricultural areas of coastal lowlands.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Peruvian Thick-knee ©David Cook

Pied Lapwing (Hoploxypterus cayanus)

Distribution: East of the Andes in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil and Bolivia; on sandy beaches throughout Amazonian lowlands.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Pied Lapwing ©Arthur Chapman

Southern Lapwing (Vanellus chilensis)

Distribution: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile and recently spreading into Central America; in lake and river banks or open grassland except in densely forested areas.

Conservation status: Least Concern

 Southern Lapwing

Andean Lapwing (Vanellus resplendens)

Distribution: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Chile and Argentina; mainly between 3000-4600m in open grassy marshes, edges of lakes and bogs, and dry fields.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Andean Lapwing ©Patty McGann 

Puna Plover (Charadrius alticola)

Distribution: Andes from Central Peru, Bolivia, Chile and Argentina, mainly between 3800-4500m, along shores of high elevation lakes, rare non-breeding visitor (May-August) to coast from Lima to the south.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Two-banded Plover (Charadrius falklandicus)

Distribution: Breeds in Argentina, Chile and the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas). Part of the population migrates north in winter with some birds reaching Uruguay and southern Brazil; in lakes, saline marshes, rocky shores and sandy shores.

Conservation status: Least Concern

 Two-banded Plover

Rufous-chested Dotterel (Charadrius modestus)

Distribution: Breeds in the southern parts of Argentina and Chile and on the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas). Some birds migrate north in winter, reaching as far as Uruguay, southern Brazil and occasionally Peru; temperate grassland, mudflats, estuaries and sandy shores.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Rufous-chested Dotterel

Rufous-chested Dotterel ©Pablo Caceres Contreras

Diademed Sandpiper-Plover (Phegornis mitchellii)

Distribution: Andes of Peru, Chile, Bolivia and Argentina; in bogs and at edges of streams and small lakes at high elevations 4100-5000 m.

Conservation status: Near Threatened

Diademed Sandpiper-Plover ©Richard Gibbons

Tawny-throated Dotterel (Oreopholus ruficollis)

Distribution: Breeds in the Andes in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru. Non-breeding migrants reach Ecuador, Brazil and Uruguay and it is a vagrant to the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); in subtropical or tropical dry scrubland, temperate grassland, subtropical or tropical high-altitude grassland, and pastureland.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Tawny-throated Dotterel ©Vince Smith

Magellanic Plover (Pluvianellus socialis)

Distribution: Partially resident in the extreme south of Chile and south Argentina, with part of the population wintering north to the Valdes peninsula, south-central Argentina, and sometimes as far as Buenos Aires province; breeds inland and then moves to the coast during the winter, particularly to estuaries.

Conservation status: Near Threatened

 Magellanic Plover

Magellanic Oystercatcher (Haematopus leucopodus)

Distribution: Argentina, Chile and the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); in freshwater lakes and sandy shores.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Magellanic Oystercatcher 

Blackish Oystercatcher (Haematopus ater)

Distribution: Argentina, Chile, the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and Peru, and is a vagrant to Uruguay; usually in rocky shores.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Blackish Oystercatcher ©Pablo Caceres Contreras 

Andean Avocet (Recurvirostra andina)

Distribution: Above 3500m in northwestern Argentina, western Bolivia, northern Chile and southern Peru, is non-migratory. May move to slightly lower altitudes when not breeding; usually around shallow saline lakes.

Conservation status: Least Concern

Andean Avocet ©Richard Gibbons

All photos under Creative Commons License

to Europe (England)…

to Latin America (Peru, my lovely country)…

to Australia…

to Africa (Kenya)…

to South Asia (Maldives)…

to East Asia (Bangkok)…

to North America (United States)…

… to somewhere near the North Pole (UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (left) and Erik Solheim, Norway’s Environment Minister)…

So what’s the big deal about 350?

It is the magic number we need to achieve as a global community.  350ppm is what scientists say is the safe upper limit of CO2 in our atmosphere – we are currently at 390ppm.  Tomorrow, October 24th, is the International Day of Climate Action; as birders, as conservationists, and as individuals living on this planet we can join people throughout the world to create a safe climate future.

Want more information?  Please visit www.350.org 

 
Also, to see more about the impact that climate change can have on birds, see earlier blog posts here.

“With 30 endemic bird species, Hispaniola ranks high in global importance for bird conservation,” said Dr. George Wallace, American Bird Conservancy’s Vice President of Oceans and Islands. “With forests in Haiti virtually gone and an accelerated rate of forest loss in the Dominican Republic, many of these species face a bleak future—of the 30 species, 14 are ranked by IUCN as globally threatened. That’s why expanding land protected in the vicinity of Sierra de Bahoruco is so important and such a significant accomplishment.”

Hispaniolian Parrot ©Pedro Genaro Rodríguez

In addition, over 30 species of Neotropical migratory birds have been recorded there; they form an important component of the biodiversity during the northern winter, making up more than 50% of the bird life in some habitats, particularly pine forests.

The Bahoruco National Park is the most important remaining forested site for endemic birds in the Dominican Republic. The park is seriously threatened by slash and burn agriculture, hunting, the collection of birds for the pet trade, and potentially mining and unplanned tourism development.

Bay-breasted Cuckoo ©Lance Woolaver

This site, is the global stronghold for three endangered species—Bay-breasted Cuckoo, La Selle Thrush, and Hispaniolan Crossbill—and five more that are globally vulnerable—Hispaniolan Parrot, Hispaniolan Parakeet, Golden Swallow, Chat Tanager, and White-winged Warbler. Other endangered species such a Bicknell’s Thrush and the Black-capped Petrel are also present.

More information from American Bird Conservancy here.

Special thanks to Pedro Genaro Rodríguez for the Hispaniolan Parrot photo, con can see more photos in his website www.pedrogenaro.com

Rediscovered Bird Species in Peru and the Neotropical Region

This is the second part in a three part blog series examining the phenomenon of rediscovering bird species that were once thought lost or extinct.

Rediscovered Bird Species in Peru:

White-winged Guan (Penelope albipennis)

The White-winged Guan is a classic example of rediscovered Neotropical avifauna. The species was described based on a specimen collected in the Tumbes mangroves, near the border between Peru and Ecuador by the Polish zoologist Władysław Taczanowski in 1876. It wasn’t seen again for nearly 100 years and it was thought extinct until the conservationist Gustavo del Solar rediscovered it in the dry forests of northern Peru with the help of local people. An initial assessment found that there were very few in the wild, so it was decided to start a captive breeding program. Subsequently White-winged Guan born into captivity have begun to be released into their native habitat, establishing new populations in surrounding forests.

White-winged Guan ©David Cook

White-masked Antbird (Pithys castaneus)

In 1938, Berlioz described a distinctive new species of antbird in the genus Pithys, from a single specimen collected by Ramon Olalla on September 16, 1937, at ‘‘Andoas, lower Pastaza, eastern Ecuador’’. This new species, the White-masked Antbird (Pithys castaneus), has remained one of the most intriguing mysteries of Neotropical ornithology for over 60 years. It was thought extinct until its rediscovery by Thomas Valqui on July 3, 2001, in the northwestern Morona River, Loreto, Peru.

Imperial Snipe (Gallinago imperialis)

In 1869, Sclater and Salvin described a large, richly colored snipe from a single specimen obtained from the Andes in the vicinity of Bogota, Colombia, and named it Gallinago imperialis. There were no records of this species until its rediscovery by John Terborgh in the summer of 1967 in the Cordillera de Vilcabamba, Peru. Later, in 1990 it was found again by Niels Krabbe, high on the volcano Pichincha in Ecuador.

Equatorial Graytail (Xenerpestes singularis)

This bird was described in 1885 from a single specimen collected by Stolzmann at Mapoto, Provincia Ampato, in the eastern Andes of Ecuador. It was re-discovered in September 1977 in the cloud forests of the department of San Martin in northern Peru by Ted Parker. Later the Equatorial Graytail was also found in other localities in the department of Cajamarca in Peru.

Yellow-browed Toucanet (Aulacorhynchus huallagae)

The Yellow-browed Toucanet was described from a single male specimen collected "on the trail to Utcubamba, in the Huallaga Valley, east of Tayabamba" Peru, on May 3, 1932, by Carriker. The specimen was collected from "a small band" of birds, the only individuals he saw in the area. The species was not seen again for 47 years, until 1979, when members of a Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science (LSUMZ) expedition found them while following Carriker’s trail.

Rediscovered Bird Species in the Neotropical Region:

Golden-crowned Manakin (Lepidotrix vilasboasi)

The Golden-crowned Manakin was first discovered by German scientist Helmut Sick in 1957, and was officially recognized as a species in 1959. On May 14, 2002, it was rediscovered after many years in Brazil. Fábio Olmos who, together with José Fernando Pacheco, rediscovered the species said: "We were thrilled to find the lost manakin – quite distinctive from other manakins." He added: "The local economy is based on logging and cattle-ranching on cleared land. The Brazilian government is encouraging colonization but has no way of controlling loggers, squatters, colonists and gold miners once access is created. Forest destruction will remain a major threat to the long-term survival of this beautiful bird and other wildlife of the area."

Golden-crowned Manakin ©Fabio Olmos

Pale-headed Brush-Finch (Atlapetes pallidiceps)

The Pale-headed Brush-finch is a bird endemic to the Rio Jubones Valley in Azuay Province, Ecuador. It went unrecorded for 30 years despite several searches at the localities where the species had been collected in the 1960s. In November 1998, a small population of 10-20 birds was rediscovered in a side valley of the Rio Jubones drainage. Today this small population is protected in a private reserve created for this species.

Fuertes’s Parrot (Hapalopsittaca fuertesi)

On July 28, 2003, researchers of ProAves Colombia, supported by American Bird Conservancy (ABC) and the World Parrot Trust (WPT), rediscovered one of the world’s rarest parrots in the high Andes of Colombia confirming the survival of this long lost species. Colombian ornithologists Jorge Velasquez and Alonso Quevedo found a flock of 14 Fuertes’s Parrots in a remote area of the central Andes close to Los Nevados National Park. The species was originally described in 1911 by two bird collectors from the American Museum of Natural History in New York – Leo Miller and Arthur Allen.

Fuertes’s Parrot in Colombia ©ProAves Colombia

Kaempfer’s (Caatinga) Woodpecker (Celeus obrieni)

This species was first collected by E. Kaempfer on August 16, 1926, and deposited at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. In 1973, the specimen was recognized as a subspecies of Rufous-headed Woodpecker, until a commission of the SACC’s classified it as a distinct species in 2003. On October 21, 2006, it was rediscovered by Advaldo Dias do Prado and co-workers when they mist-netted and photographed a male of this species at Goiatins, in the state of Tocantins.

Kaempfer’s Woodpecker ©Guilherme R C Silva

A special thanks to ProAves Colombia for the Fuertes’s Parrot photo. You can see more about their work to conserve Colombian avifauna here.

Part I: Why we Rediscover Lost and Extinct Birds?

In recent months we have witnessed the rediscovery of two species of birds thought to be extinct – the Fiji Petrel and the Banggai Crow. How it is possible that a species believed to be extinct is rediscovered?

One explanation for the rediscovery of bird species relates to the way that many species are initially described, using the skins of birds collected by naturalists during the nineteenth and early twentieth century. Many of these skins were not immediately reviewed when collected and have remained in storage, unstudied for decades. Only when a researcher takes these specimens out years later are new species recognized. This happened with Kaempfer’s (Caatinga) Woodpecker, collected in 1926, recognized as a sub species in 1973 and then elevated to species in 2003. In the more than seventy years that elapsed between collection and description of the species, it was believed that the species had become extinct until the first wild population of this newly recognized species was rediscovered in 2006.                                                                

Another reason behind the rediscovery of species is that museums sometimes have skins that are not properly labeled or the true geographic origins of the species are vague or unknown. A good example of this is the case of the Coppery Thorntail, known from two skins collected in 1852 somewhere in Bolivia. This lack of geographic detail as well as the fact that Bolivian boundaries have changed greatly since the time of collection has resulted in the fact that no person has yet seen this species in its habitat. However, the door is open for the possibility of rediscovery.

Confusion about the existence of certain species also arises when there are few specimens available for study. Scientists are challenged to classify whether these rare museum specimens truly represent a distinct species or if they are hybrids of other species. This happened with the White-masked Antibird. Scientists had been doubtful about the existence of the White-masked Antibird until it was recently rediscovered in Peru.

A slightly different scenario than rediscovering a species after it has been labeled extinct is recognizing that an ‘extinct’ species cannot be found because it never existed. Some ‘new’ species have been misidentified and are actually part of an extant species. This is the case with the Red-throated Wood-rail of Peru that went from being considered an extinct species to being dubious taxa by the SACC. The supposed Red-throated Wood-rail is now believed to be a poorly preserved specimen of the Gray-necked Wood-rail. Something similar happened with the Kalinowski’s Tinamou, of which all trace was lost for nearly 100 years until it was "rediscovered" in 2000. However, upon rediscovery, the SACC deemed that this species designation wasn’t valid; the Kalinowski’s Tinamou is now regarded as a synonym of Ornate Tinamou, another species that lives in Peru. A similar occurrence happened in the case of the Tasman Booby, which was believed extinct and now known to be a subspecies of Masked Booby.

In other instances, species that were collected, studied and described as new species in the nineteenth century remain in oblivion because their area of distribution encompasses very remote or inaccessible places where there are no people with the knowledge to identify them in the field. This happened with the Fiji Petrel rediscovered this year and the Chinese Crested Tern rediscovered in 2000 in an inaccessible military zone between China and Taiwan. These species were never really missing or extinct; it is just that people with the knowledge to identify these birds had not traveled to these remote or inaccessible areas.

Chinese Crested Tern © PeiWen Chang

Additionally, some birds are naturally shy and only came out at dawn or night. This was the case with the Imperial Snipe, described in 1869 from a single specimen obtained from the Andes in the vicinity of Bogota, Colombia. It was not seen again until 1967 when it was found in Peru by John Terborgh. There is also the possibility that two bird species can look very much alike, thus making them hard to distinguish in the field. For example, when Beck’s Petrel was rediscovered, the Birds Australia Rarities Committee, having pictures in hand, rejected the bird’s identity because they couldn’t separate this from the Tahiti’s Petrel.

Finally, sometimes a species has become so rare due to hunting, habitat loss or natural reasons, that it becomes almost impossible to find. This may be the case with the controversial Ivory-billed Woodpecker. It was rediscovered in 2004 in the Big Woods area of Arkansas. Although there have been intensive searches throughout the region, until now there is no undisputed record about the species’ survival and the status of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker remains undetermined.

Regardless of the amazement and joy at rediscovering a species that was once thought lost, these birds still need extensive protection. Usually these species are critically endangered and need a lot of attention from governments and bird advocates to survive in the long term. Through these rediscoveries nature has given us a second chance and we must do all that is possible to conserve these and other endangered birds as well as their habitats.

There isn’t a second chance for the Carolina Parakeet, it became extinct in 1918

In Part II of this series I’ll examine a case by case account of the latest species that have been rediscovered in Peru, the Neotropical region and the world.

All photos under Creative Commons License: Carolina Parakeet photo, Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences photo © Bill Lynch