Lophornis brachylophus

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	APODIFORMES	TROCHILIDAE

Scientific Name:

Lophornis brachylophus

Species Authority:

Moore, 1949

Common Name/s:

English	–	Short-crested Coquette
Spanish	–	Coqueta Cresticorta, Coqueta de Guerrero

Taxonomic Notes:

Gender agreement of species name follows David and Gosselin (2002b).

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Critically Endangered B1ab(i,ii,iii,v) ver 3.1

Year Published:

2012

Assessor/s:

BirdLife International

Reviewer/s:

Butchart, S. & Symes, A.

Contributor/s:

Hansson, S. & Howell, S.

Justification:
This species is only known from along one road and apparently occupies an extremely small range. Combined with habitat destruction and degradation, this qualifies the species as Critically Endangered. However, surveys may find the species to be more widespread, resulting in a downlisting to Endangered.

History:

2009	–	Critically Endangered
2008	–	Critically Endangered
2004	–	Critically Endangered
2000	–	Critically Endangered
1996	–	Endangered
1994	–	Endangered

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	Lophornis brachylophus is only known from a 25 km stretch of the Atoyac-Paraíso-Puerto del Gallo road in the Sierra de Atoyac (north-west of Acapulco), and is likely to be confined to the Sierra Madre del Sur in Guerrero, Mexico. All records have been near the villages of Arroyo Grande, Paraíso and Nueva Delhi in the months of January-July (S. Hansson in litt. 2010). At least seasonally, it can be locally fairly common to uncommon (Howell and Webb 1995a).
Countries:	Native: Mexico
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	The population is estimated to number 250-999 mature individuals based on an assessment of known records, descriptions of abundance and range size. This is consistent with recorded population density estimates for congeners or close relatives with a similar body size, and the fact that only a proportion of the estimated Extent of Occurrence is likely to be occupied. This estimate is equivalent to 375-1,499 individuals in total, rounded here to 350-1,500 individuals.
Population Trend:	Decreasing

Population:

The population is estimated to number 250-999 mature individuals based on an assessment of known records, descriptions of abundance and range size. This is consistent with recorded population density estimates for congeners or close relatives with a similar body size, and the fact that only a proportion of the estimated Extent of Occurrence is likely to be occupied. This estimate is equivalent to 375-1,499 individuals in total, rounded here to 350-1,500 individuals.

Population Trend:

Decreasing

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	It inhabits humid to semi-humid evergreen and semi-deciduous forest, forest edge and shade coffee plantations at elevations of 900-1,800 m, where it feeds on the flowers of Inga and Cecropia (Howell and Webb 1995a). There are local reports to 650 m suggesting that it may migrate altitudinally, breeding at higher elevations (possibly November-February), and spending March-August (possibly longer) at lower altitudes (Howell and Webb 1995a).
Systems:	Terrestrial

Habitat and Ecology:

It inhabits humid to semi-humid evergreen and semi-deciduous forest, forest edge and shade coffee plantations at elevations of 900-1,800 m, where it feeds on the flowers of Inga and Cecropia (Howell and Webb 1995a). There are local reports to 650 m suggesting that it may migrate altitudinally, breeding at higher elevations (possibly November-February), and spending March-August (possibly longer) at lower altitudes (Howell and Webb 1995a).

Systems:

Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	In the early 1990s, semi-deciduous forest between Paraíso and Nueva Delhi was being rapidly cleared for the cultivation of maize, fruit and coffee. Much of the remaining forest provides cover for illegal drug-growing making an evaluation of habitat quality difficult (S. N. G. Howell in litt. 1998).

Major Threat(s):

In the early 1990s, semi-deciduous forest between Paraíso and Nueva Delhi was being rapidly cleared for the cultivation of maize, fruit and coffee. Much of the remaining forest provides cover for illegal drug-growing making an evaluation of habitat quality difficult (S. N. G. Howell in litt. 1998).

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	Conservation Actions Underway CITES Appendix II, but no other measures are known. Conservation Actions Proposed Designate a protected area in the Sierra de Atoyac (Hernández-Baños et al. 1995) incorporating the range of this species. Survey to clarify the full extent of this species's distribution. Survey to assess the impact of shade coffee plantations on this species and understand its altitudinal movements.

Conservation Actions:

Conservation Actions Underway
CITES Appendix II, but no other measures are known.

Conservation Actions Proposed
Designate a protected area in the Sierra de Atoyac (Hernández-Baños et al. 1995) incorporating the range of this species. Survey to clarify the full extent of this species's distribution. Survey to assess the impact of shade coffee plantations on this species and understand its altitudinal movements.

Citation:	BirdLife International 2012. Lophornis brachylophus. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 24 May 2013.
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