Justification This montane flycatcher qualifies as Vulnerable because its small, naturally fragmented range and population are subject to continuing rapid declines as a result of habitat destruction, chiefly around the lower limit of its altitudinal range.

Family/Sub-family Muscicapidae

Species name author Ogilvie-Grant, 1895

Taxonomic source(s) Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993)

Identification 19 cm. Large, vividly patterned, skulking flycatcher. Olive-brown head and upperparts, rufous-fringed wings and tail. Prominent bright white supercilium and throat. Dark rufescent-brown sides of throat and breast-band, bright burnt-orange flanks, white belly and undertail-coverts. Similar spp. Eye-browed Thrush Turdus obscurus superficially similar but has very different behaviour, paler, greyer head and lacks dark breast-band. Voice Not well known but thought to utter thin high-pitched phrases. Hints Skulking and seldom seen. Most likely to be located by song.

Population estimate

Population trend

Range estimate (breeding/resident)

Country endemic?

2,500-9,999

decreasing

9,800 km²

Yes

Range & population Rhinomyias insignis is endemic to the mountains of northern Luzon in the Philippines, where it is known from various sites in the Cordillera Central and from Mt Los Dos Cuernos and Mt Palali in the Sierra Madre. It is generally shy, quiet and difficult to observe, but recent trapping studies revealed it to be common at Balbalan-Balbalasang National Park, and also on Mt. Amuyao¹. It may have been under-recorded owing to its furtive nature, and could be more widespread than currently thought. However, trapping studies at various montane sites outside the Cordillera Central and Sierra Madre between 2000 and 2007 failed to find it¹.

Important Bird Areas Click here to view map showing IBAs where species is recorded and triggers any of the IBA criteria.

Ecology: It inhabits the understorey of montane or mossy forest above 950 m (principally above 1,500 m), apparently favouring thick, shady patches in areas dominated by oaks. However, it has also been recorded in forest with little undergrowth and also in second growth adjacent to oak-dominated primary forest.

Threats Habitat destruction is the chief threat. In 1988, an estimated 24% of Luzon remained forested and forest cover in the Sierra Madre has declined by 83% since the 1930s. Mossy forests of the Cordillera Central are threatened by conversion to agricultural land, primarily for vegetable production². Several areas on Mt Pulog are being cleared for agriculture, with occasional selective logging also occurring there. Deforestation is creeping up the slopes of Mt Polis, and Mt Data is now almost devoid of forest.

Conservation measures underway It occurs in Mt Pulog National Park, and the recent record from the Mt Los Dos Cuernos suggests that a healthy population could persist in the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park, as well as in the nearby Penablanca Landscape and Seascape Reserve³.

Conservation measures proposed Conduct surveys using mist-nets to determine its current distribution and status in the Cordillera Central and the Sierra Madre mountains. Extend the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park to incorporate Mt Los Dos Cuernos. Propose further known key sites, including Mt Polis, for establishment as formal protected areas. Control habitat degradation, including the expansion of vegetable cultivation, in Mt Pulog National Park.

References Collar et al. (1999). 1. L. Heaney in litt. (2007). 2. M. Poulsen in litt. (2007). 3. M. V. Duya in litt. (2007).

Further web sources of information

Fully detailed species accounts from the Threatened birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book (BirdLife International 2001), together with new information collated since the publication of the Red Data Book

Text account compilers Phil Benstead (BirdLife International), Pete Davidson (BirdLife International), James Gilroy (BirdLife International), Nic Peet (BirdLife International)

Contributors Melizar Duya (Conservation International Philippines), Lawrence Heaney (Field Museum of Natural History Chicago), Michael Poulsen (Nordic Agency for Development and Ecology)

IUCN Red List evaluators Phil Benstead (BirdLife International), Stuart Butchart (BirdLife International), Nigel Collar (BirdLife International), Mike Crosby (BirdLife International), G. Gil, James Gilroy (BirdLife International), Alison Stattersfield (BirdLife International), Joe Tobias (BirdLife International)

Recommended citation BirdLife International (2009) Species factsheet: Rhinomyias insignis. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 10/2/2010

This information is based upon, and updates, the information published in BirdLife International (2000) Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona and Cambridge, UK: Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, BirdLife International (2004) Threatened birds of the world 2004 CD-ROM and BirdLife International (2008) Threatened birds of the world 2008 CD-ROM. These sources provide the information for species accounts for the birds on the IUCN Red List.

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