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Trinidad piping guan (Pipile pipile)
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Find out here.Trinidad piping guan fact file
- Description
- Biology
- Range
- Habitat
- Status
- Threats
- Conservation
- Find out more
- Glossary
- References
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Trinidad piping guan description
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Aves |
| Order | Galliformes |
| Family | Cracidae |
| Genus | Pipile (1) |
The Trinidad piping guan is known locally as the 'pawi' (3). This rare bird is a blackish-brown colour all-over with a slight purple glossy hue and with white tips to the wing-coverts (2). The bare dewlap and cere are blue in colour while the legs are red (4).
- Spanish
- Pava de Trinidad, Pava Rajadora, Yacutinga Cariazul.
- Size
- Length: 69 cm (2)
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Related species
Trinidad piping guan biology
Very little is known about the natural ecology of the Trinidad piping guan. There are however, records of breeding activity in most months suggesting that this species has a drawn-out breeding season (5). Nests may be found amongst a tangle of vegetation and are platforms constructed from sticks, which usually contain two eggs (5).
Adults forage at dusk in small groups of up to five individuals (5) and feed mainly on the fruit and seeds of trees, preferring the fruit of the light virola tree (Virola surinamensis) (3).
TopTrinidad piping guan range
Endemic to Trinidad and previously found in forests throughout the island from sea level to the mountain summit (3). Today the only remaining population is found in the eastern portion of the Northern Range where only 150 km² of suitable habitat remains (2).
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Species with a similar range
Trinidad piping guan habitat
Inhabits the steep, hilly areas of montane forest where numerous streams, sparse ground cover and abundant lianas and epiphytes occur (2).
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Species found in a similar habitat
Trinidad piping guan status
Classified as Critically Endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List (1) and listed on Appendix I of CITES (6).
Trinidad piping guan threats
The Trinidad piping guan has undergone a drastic decline in population numbers, mainly due to illegal hunting but also from the effects of deforestation, either for timber or for the conversion to plantation agriculture (2). These factors continue to threaten this species today (1).
TopTrinidad piping guan conservation
The Trinidad piping guan has been legally protected since 1963 and international trade in the species is banned by its listing on Appendix I of CITES (2). Much of the present range is within forest reserves but the laws protecting both the species and the habitat are generally poorly enforced (2). Recent campaigns appear to be finally changing attitudes and species-specific ecotourism may have a role to play in the future of this species (2). Presently however, the population is extremely small (estimated at around 200 individuals) (2), and time to save this species may be running out.
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View information on this species at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre. |
Find out more
For more information on the Trinidad piping guan see:
-
BirdLife International’s World Bird Database
http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/index.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=87&m=0 - BirdLife International (2000) Threatened Birds of the World. Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, Barcelona and Cambridge.
Authentication
Authenticated by BirdLife International Secretariat.
http://www.birdlife.org
Glossary
- Cere
- In birds, an area of skin at the base of the upper mandible surrounding the nostrils.
- Dewlap
- A fold of loose skin hanging below the throat.
- Endemic
- A species or taxonomic group that is only found in one particular country or geographic area.
- Epiphytes
- A plant that uses another plant, typically a tree, for its physical support, but which does not draw nourishment from it.
References
-
IUCN Red List (October, 2002)
http://www.redlist.org - BirdLife International. (2000) Threatened Birds of the World. Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, Barcelona and Cambridge.
-
CITES (October, 2002)
http://www.cites.org -
Hayes, F.E. (October, 2002)
http://www.geocities.com/floyd_hayes/research_piping-guan - Erritzoe, J. (1993) The Birds of CITES and How to Identify Them. The Lutterworth Press, Cambridge.
- del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. and Sargatol, J. (1994) Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol 2: New World Vultures to Guineafowl. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
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Image credit
Trinidad piping guan on branch
© kevinschafer.com
Kevin Schafer Photography
2148 Halleck Ave SW
Seattle
WA
98116
USA
Tel: +01 (206) 933-1668
Fax: +01 (206) 933-1659
kevin@kevinschafer.com
http://www.kevinschafer.com
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