Fernandina's Flicker (Colaptes fernandinae) - BirdLife species factsheet

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VU	Fernandina's Flicker Colaptes fernandinae

2010 IUCN Red List Category (as evaluated by BirdLife International - the official Red List Authority for birds for IUCN): Vulnerable

Justification This species is classified as Vulnerable because although it has a very small population, which is severely fragmented and rapidly declining, the largest subpopulation in Zapata is too large for the species to qualify as Endangered.

Family/Sub-family Picidae

Species name author Vigors, 1827

Taxonomic source(s) AOU checklist (1998 + supplements), Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993), Stotz et al. (1996)

Identification 30 cm. Medium-sized, long-billed and heavily barred woodpecker. Upperparts and wings brown-black barred yellowish, below yellowish barred brown-black, crown with cinnamon wash, ear-coverts yellower. Long, narrow and decurved bill. Male has black moustache, heavily mottled in female. Similar spp Cuban race of Northern Flicker C. auratus chrysocaulosus is more strikingly marked and more arboreal. Voice Variable, including a descending peah and a kind of Krrr, resembling that of the West Indian Woodpecker Melanerpes superciliaris. Often quiet. Hints Check areas of palms in open country and woodland edge. Often feeds on ground.

Population estimate	Population trend	Range estimate (breeding/resident)	Country endemic?
600 - 800	decreasing	7,400 km²	Yes

Range & population Colaptes fernandinae was once widespread but never abundant on Cuba, and is now rare and localised; there are probably fewer than 900 individuals in total. It is currently known from Soroa, Mil Cumbres, Nortey, and Loma del Taburete in Pinar del Río province; the Zapata Swamp in Matanzas province (from at least twelve localities); Monte Ramonal, near Corralillo, El Dorado, and Isabela de Sagua in northern Villa Clara province; Aguada de Pasajeros and Rodas in Cienfuegos province; near Gibara (in the Campos de Veloso) and near Velazco (El Recreo), in Holguín province; Jobabo in Las Tunas province; Cienaga de Birama in Granma Province; and Sierra de Najasa (at La Belén and El Chorrillo) in Camagüey province^3,5,9,10. There are also recent records from eight localities in Santiago de Cuba province, where the most important locality is La Tabla^4,10. The largest population persists in the Zapata Swamp, where total numbers were estimated at 300-400 pairs in 1998^2,5, falling to 250-300 in 2007¹². Even within Zapata Swamp it continues to decline, for instance, in Bermeja in the early 90's there were between 60 to 80 pairs, in 2007 this had dropped to between 14 to 18 pairs¹².

Ecology: It breeds in palm-savanna, where it nests in dead and live palm trees, especially Palma cana^1,6, and also inhabits pastures, swamps, forest edge and dense woodland⁸. Coiurtship takes place in late December and January, and nest excavation begins in February or March; breeding takes place in March-June⁸, and loose "colonies" have occasionally been found at Bermeja in the Zapata Swamp^3,5,7,12. However, it is mostly solitary, and aggression between conspecifics is common⁷. There may be an association with palms used as a source of thatch, because fungus invades such trees making them more suitable for nesting¹.

Threats Logging and clearance for agriculture are severe threats. Nest-trees are often shared with the Cuban Parrot Amazona leucocephala, and trappers frequently topple the trees to collect young parrots, causing both the loss of the woodpecker's brood and the permanent destruction of the nest-site⁶. Community members will often fell a tree containing a woodpecker nest hole just to check if there is a parrot present, or even fell trees with woodpecker nests when there are clearly no parrots present, presumably to eat the eggs or nestlings¹². Hurricanes have a devastating impact on the dead palm trees, as evidenced at Bermeja after Hurricane Lilli in 1996^3,5, and have recently hit the species's stronghold in Zapata, causing significant destruction¹¹. West Indian Woodpeckers Melanerpes superciliaris have been observed to prey on the eggs and chicks⁷.

Conservation measures underway The entire Zapata Swamp is a reserve, but there are no available resources to effectively police the area⁴.

Conservation measures proposed Continue to monitor population trends. Monitor rates of habitat loss and degradation. Design and distribute posters in villages around the Zapata Swamp to raise awareness of the importance and vulnerability of this species and others such as A. leucocephala⁴. Fit nest-boxes to live palms within and around present nesting areas⁴. Consider controlling West Indian Woodpeckers at key sites to reduce conpetition for nest sites¹².

References Collar et al. (1992). 1. J. A. Jackson in litt. (1999). 2. A. Kirkconnell in litt. (1999). 3. Mitchell (1998). 4. Mitchell et al. (2000). 5. A. Mitchell in litt. (1998). 6. Mitchell and Wells (1997). 7. Wells and Mitchell (1995). 8. Winkler et al. (1995). 9. G. Kirwan in litt. (2005). 10. A. Kirkconnell in litt. (2005). 11. A. Mitchell in litt. (2005). 12. A. Mitchell in litt. (2007).

Further web sources of information

Fully detailed species account from the Threatened birds of the Americas: the BirdLife International Red Data Book (BirdLife International 1992). Please note, taxonomic treatment and IUCN Red List category may have changed since publication.

Recuento detallado de la especie tomado del libro Aves Amenazadas de las Americas, Libro Rojo de BirdLife International (BirdLife International 1992). Nota: la taxonomoía y la categoría de la Lista Roja de la UICN pudo haber cambiado desde esta publicación.

Text account compilers Phil Benstead (BirdLife International), Matt Harding (BirdLife International), Isabel Isherwood (BirdLife International), Simon Mahood (BirdLife International), David Wege (BirdLife International)

Contributors J. A. Jackson, Arturo Kirkconnell (Museo Nacional de Historia Natural), G. M. Kirwan, Andy Mitchell

IUCN Red List evaluators Stuart Butchart (BirdLife International), Simon Mahood (BirdLife International)

Recommended citation BirdLife International (2010) Species factsheet: Colaptes fernandinae. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 30/7/2010

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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