New woodcock from the Philippines

10-10-2001

A new species of woodcock has been described from the Philippines. The formal description appears in the journal of the Oriental Bird Club (Forktail 17: pp. 1-12).

Bukidnon Woodcock Scolopax bukidnonensis is known from central and northern Luzon and four mountains on Mindanao. Specimens were obtained in the 1960s but were incorrectly identified as Eurasian Woodcock S. rusticola and it was not until birds were sighted and heard in 1993 on Mt Kitanglad, Bukidnon Province, Mindanao, and a specimen later obtained there that the species was recognised as distinct. The new species appears to locally common. Its montane forests are in extremely rugged terrain that is not conducive to farming and have few commercial trees for logging, so the species does not seem to be of immediate conservation concern.

Like other members of the genus, the Bukidnon Woodcock has a rhoding display flight and its vocalisations are transcribed in the formal description as "TI'TI'TI'TI'TI'....burp burp burp....TI'TI'TI'TI'TI'...burp burp burp...TI'TI'TI'TI'TI"!

The paper goes on to examine the taxonomic status of other species of Asian/Papuasian woodcocks and concludes that two formerly recognised subspecies of Rufous Woodcock S. saturata should be considered full species, Javan Woodcock S. saturata and New Guinea Woodcock S. rosenbergii.