Venezuelan Wood-quail (Odontophorus columbianus): request for information

This discussion was first published on Dec 2 2010 as part of the 2011 Red List update, but remains open for comment to enable reassessment in 2013.

Link to BirdLife species factsheet for Venezuelan Wood-quail

Venezuelan Wood-quail Odontophorus columbianus is listed as Near Threatened under criterion B1a+b(i,ii,iii,iv) because, although it has an Extent of Occurrence estimated at 9,400 km², within which it is suspected to be declining owing to habitat loss and hunting pressure, the population is not considered to be severely fragmented or restricted to a few locations.

Up-to-date information is requested on this species’s population, the likely rate of decline over 12 years (estimate of three generations) and the severity of threats. In particular, information on the level of habitat fragmentation and number of locations occupied by the species will help in the assessment of its status. Its habitat would be considered severely fragmented if over 50% was in patches too small to support viable populations.

With regard to the IUCN criteria, the term ‘location’ “defines a geographically or ecologically distinct area in which a single threatening event can rapidly affect all individuals of the taxon present. The size of the location depends on the area covered by the threatening event and may include part of one or many subpopulations. Where a taxon is affected by more than one threatening event, location should be defined by considering the most serious plausible threat” (IUCN 2001).

IUCN (2001) IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1. IUCN Species Survival Commission. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN.

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