Magdalena Tinamou
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| Crypturellus saltuarius Wetmore, 1950 |
The Magdalena Tinamou, (Crypturellus saltuarius), is a member of one of the most ancient bird families, the tinamous. It is often treated as a subspecies of the Red-legged Tinamou, and SACC rejected a proposal to elevate it to species status.
This species is endemic to Colombia. It may be extinct, since it has not been seen since the type specimen was collected in 1943.
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[edit] Characteristics
The Magdalena Tinamou is similar to Red-legged Tinamou. Its total length is approximately 27-32 cm. (10,5-12,5 in). It is a medium-sized, brown tinamou. Its upperparts are dark ruddy with black barring on rump, brown wings barred buff, paler underparts with dark barring on lower flanks and vent, white chin and greyish tinge to throat.
[edit] Habitats
From historical reports of Mariquita, Neiva Department, it is believed that Magdalena Tinamou occurs in Ayacucho and Cesar in the Río Magdalena valley, Colombia. It may still survive in the few remnant foothill forests on the western slope of the eastern Cordillera, and also on the eastern slope of the Serranía de San Lucas. The species has traditionally been considered to inhabit lowland dry forest and savannas. However, in 2002, it has been suggested that this species inhabits more humid, foothill forest. The Ayacucho specimen was taken at 150 m altitude.
[edit] Threats
The Magdalena Tinamou is probably threatened from hunting and from forest clearance. It was found the habitat in which it was found has been heavily modified for agriculture. Large areas of the Magdalena valley had been converted to pasture or cultivated as early as the mid-18th century, and the remaining of wet forest was cleared during a government-sponsored colonisation and infrastructure development programme in the 1960s and 1970s. Flat alluvial portions of the valley are now used for intensive rice and cotton production, while undulating terrain has been converted to pastureland. This left only approximately 1-2 % of old secondary and primary forest. However, recent research collected information by local inhabitants suggesting that this bird still survives (Donegal et al, 2003); tinamous are notoriously cryptic and not easily found.
[edit] Conservation measures
No Conservation measure is currently underway. However, it was proposed to conduct ornithological surveys and interviews in San Calixto/ Convención and the foothills on the western slope of the east Andes above Pailitas, the eastern foothills of Serranía de San Lucas, and between Pailitas and La Jagua de Ibirico. It was also proposed to locate surviving forest patches using aerial photographs and assess the species's taxonomic position.
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Crypturellus saltuarius. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Database entry includes a range map and justification for why this species is critically endangered
- Donegan, T. M. et al (2003): Search for the Magdalena Tinamou: project report. Colombian EBA Project Report Series No. 4. Bogota: Fundación Proaves. pdf link
- Rejection of proposal to elevate C. columbianus to species status (The South American Classification Committee)
