Catharus bicknelli

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	AVES	PASSERIFORMES	TURDIDAE

Scientific Name:

Catharus bicknelli

Species Authority:

(Ridgway, 1882)

Common Name/s:

English

–

Bicknell's Thrush

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Vulnerable A2c+3c+4c;B1ab(i,ii,iii,iv,v) ver 3.1

Year Published:

2008

Assessor/s:

BirdLife International

Reviewer/s:

Bird, J. & Butchart, S.

Contributor/s:

Busby, D., McFarland, K., Rimmer, C. & Seutin, G.

Justification:
The continuing reduction in the extent, area and quality of this species's wintering habitats, as a result of agricultural conversion, logging and charcoal production, is thought to be causing a rapid population decline, qualifying it as Vulnerable.

History:

2004	–	Vulnerable
2000	–	Vulnerable
1994	–	Not Recognized
1988	–	Not Recognized

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	Catharus bicknelli breeds patchily in south-east Quebec and the Maritime provinces, Canada, and eastern New York and northern New England, USA^1,5,6. There are 20,000-50,000 adults in the USA^4,10 and 1,000-3,000 birds in the Maritime provinces², but there have been local extinctions¹⁰. It migrates along the coast to winter in the Caribbean⁷. The stronghold is the Dominican Republic (especially the Sierra de Baoruco and Cordillera Central) and possibly Haiti^7,9. It may also winter in the Blue Mountains of Jamaica, and small numbers occur in Puerto Rico and Dominica. There are three records from Cuba, including one in the Sierra Maestra in 1999^3,10,11.
Countries:	Native: Canada; Cuba; Dominican Republic; Haiti; Jamaica; Martinique; Puerto Rico; United States Vagrant: Virgin Islands, U.S.
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	D. Busby in litt. (1999), K. McFarland in litt. (1999), C. C. Rimmer in litt. (1998, 1999).
Population Trend:	Decreasing

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	It breeds in dense montane forests (above 900 m) of balsam fir Abies balsamae and red spruce Picea rubens, usually near the treeline^1,8, but occupies less than 75% of available habitat¹⁰. In Canada, it also inhabits regenerating clear-cuts and coastal areas with spruce-fir at low elevations¹. In winter, it occurs in moist broadleaved and mixed pine-broadleaved montane forests and secondary woodlands^7,8,9. It nests in June-July (present on breeding grounds May-September), sometimes with high failure rates⁸. It may sexually segregate in winter, with females in "poorer quality" habitats¹⁰.
Systems:	Terrestrial

Habitat and Ecology:

It breeds in dense montane forests (above 900 m) of balsam fir Abies balsamae and red spruce Picea rubens, usually near the treeline^1,8, but occupies less than 75% of available habitat¹⁰. In Canada, it also inhabits regenerating clear-cuts and coastal areas with spruce-fir at low elevations¹. In winter, it occurs in moist broadleaved and mixed pine-broadleaved montane forests and secondary woodlands^7,8,9. It nests in June-July (present on breeding grounds May-September), sometimes with high failure rates⁸. It may sexually segregate in winter, with females in "poorer quality" habitats¹⁰.

Systems:

Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	Acid precipitation may have damaged breeding habitat in the 1960s and 1970s^6,8. On a predicted doubling of carbon dioxide by 2050, atmospheric warming is forecast to eliminate montane spruce-fir^4,10. Ski-resort, communication and wind-power developments potentially threaten local populations^1,8. In Quebec, the widespread practice of thinning renders habitat unsuitable¹¹. Agricultural conversion, logging and charcoal production are rapidly clearing and fragmenting winter habitat^1,10.

Major Threat(s):

Acid precipitation may have damaged breeding habitat in the 1960s and 1970s^6,8. On a predicted doubling of carbon dioxide by 2050, atmospheric warming is forecast to eliminate montane spruce-fir^4,10. Ski-resort, communication and wind-power developments potentially threaten local populations^1,8. In Quebec, the widespread practice of thinning renders habitat unsuitable¹¹. Agricultural conversion, logging and charcoal production are rapidly clearing and fragmenting winter habitat^1,10.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	Conservation Actions Underway CMS Appendix II. There is much research activity in the breeding range and, increasingly, the Caribbean. Some important breeding areas and c.50% of sites in the Dominican Republic are actively protected⁹, but recent funding requests for management were turned down. Management and protection of existing reserves and parks is now inadequate¹². A predictive model has been developed and used to generate a population estimate for this species within New Hampshire¹³, and a more general model has been used to predict distribution in the north-eastern USA in order to inform and plan habitat management/alteration decisions¹⁵. New (and expansion of existing) ski-resorts are developed following environmental impact assessment, in a way that mitigates against habitat loss and disturbance¹⁴. One development established a fund for protecting the wintering grounds¹⁴. Conservation Actions Proposed Clarify distribution and migration details^1,8. Refine estimates of population size^1,8, potentially by using an existing predictive model and applying it to new areas. Evaluate human impacts on breeding birds¹⁰. Clarify winter segregation¹⁰. Develop strategies to maintain dense stands of regenerating balsam fir in Quebec. Develop management plans for existing, and designate new, reserves in the Dominican Republic^9,10.

Conservation Actions:

Conservation Actions Underway
CMS Appendix II. There is much research activity in the breeding range and, increasingly, the Caribbean. Some important breeding areas and c.50% of sites in the Dominican Republic are actively protected⁹, but recent funding requests for management were turned down. Management and protection of existing reserves and parks is now inadequate¹². A predictive model has been developed and used to generate a population estimate for this species within New Hampshire¹³, and a more general model has been used to predict distribution in the north-eastern USA in order to inform and plan habitat management/alteration decisions¹⁵. New (and expansion of existing) ski-resorts are developed following environmental impact assessment, in a way that mitigates against habitat loss and disturbance¹⁴. One development established a fund for protecting the wintering grounds¹⁴.

Conservation Actions Proposed
Clarify distribution and migration details^1,8. Refine estimates of population size^1,8, potentially by using an existing predictive model and applying it to new areas. Evaluate human impacts on breeding birds¹⁰. Clarify winter segregation¹⁰. Develop strategies to maintain dense stands of regenerating balsam fir in Quebec. Develop management plans for existing, and designate new, reserves in the Dominican Republic^9,10.

Citation:	BirdLife International 2008. Catharus bicknelli. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 24 May 2012.
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