New Records of Birds from the Maldives, with Notes on Other Species
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FORKTAIL 17 (2001): 67–73 New records of birds from the Maldives, with notes on other species R. CHARLES ANDERSON and MICHAEL BALDOCK Twelve species of bird were recorded from the Maldives for the first time: Lesser Whistling-duck Dendrocygna javanica, Fork-tailed Swift Apus pacificus, Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus, Pomarine Jaeger Stercorarius pomarinus, Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus, Jouanin’s Petrel Bulweria fallax, Streaked Shearwater Calonectris leucomelas, Swinhoe’s Storm-petrel Oceanodroma monorhis, Leach’s Storm-petrel O. leucorhoa, Long-tailed Shrike Lanius schach, Red-rumped Swallow Hirundo daurica and Streak-throated Swallow H. fluvicola. In addition, published records of Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis, Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri, Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybridus, Red-billed Tropicbird Phaethon aethereus, and Forest Wagtail Dendronanthus indicus were not included in the 1994 checklist of birds (J. S. Ash and A. Shafeeg, The birds of the Maldives. Forktail 10: 1-31). This raises the total number of bird species recorded from the islands to 167. Unusual records of other species, and recent bird conservation measures in the Maldives are noted. INTRODUCTION tuna schools, and is essential for the successful operation of the fishery. In addition, a book on Maldivian seabirds The birds of the Maldives were recently reviewed by by Ahmed Shafeeg (1993), which was available to Ash Ash and Shafeeg (1994). They listed 150 species, with a and Ali Shafeeg (1994) only in manuscript form, has further ten species listed as unconfirmed. Five other been published. (Ali Shafeeg is the son of Ahmed species have been recorded from the Maldives, but were Shafeeg). not included in the review of Ash and Shafeeg (1994). Finally, a summary checklist of the birds of the The background to Maldivian ornithology is described Maldive Islands was privately printed by Lamsfuss by Phillips and Sims (1958), Phillips (1963), Strickland (1998). It included two first records: Common and Jenner (1978) and Ash and Shafeeg (1994). There Kingfisher Alcedo atthis and Forest Wagtail Dendronanthus is therefore no need to repeat it here, beyond mentioning indicus. It also included two other species (Red-tailed two minor reports of birds (by non-specialists) Tropicbird Phaethon rubricauda and Western Reef Egret overlooked by previous reviewers. Egretta gularis) previously unrecorded from the Maldives. Fosberg (1957) spent three days in the Maldives in These records were based on sightings at sea, but the April 1956, when he visited Malé and two nearby sightings were outside the current Maldivian Exclusive uninhabited islands, Kuda Bandos and Furana. His Economic Zone, and so these species will be listed as interest was mainly botanical, and the only birds he ‘potential visitors’ in future printings of the checklist noted were crows and ‘two individuals of a kind of large (G. Lamsfuss, in litt. May 2001). heron’ on Malé, a small sandpiper on Kuda Bandos, The aims of this report are to document several first and crows and a flock of unidentified ‘white terns’ on records of birds from the Maldives; to present new Furana. The species he saw were probably the House information on other species already known from the Crow Corvus splendens maledivicus, Grey Heron Ardea Maldives; and to note recent conservation developments. cinerea, Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos and Black- RCA has been resident in Maldives since 1983. MB naped Tern Sterna sumatrana. has visited the Maldives three times, travelling to the Webb (1988) provided a wide-ranging general northern atolls in February 1999 and April 2001, and account of the Maldives. He listed 18 species of bird by to the southern atolls in March 2000. Species marked name, including what appears to be the first record of with a single asterisk (*) are first records for the Maldives; the Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri. In addition, those marked with a double asterisk (**) have been he provided photos of eight common species. These previously reported but were not recorded by Ash and included the Indian Pond Heron Ardeola grayii in the Shafeeg (1994). For details of atoll abbreviations used background of his photo of flying herons (Webb 1988: here, and a map, see Ash and Shafeeg (1994). 71); the bird labelled a ‘Maldivian Pond Heron’ in his photo on page 72 is actually a Little Heron Butorides striatus. RESULTS Since the publication of Ash and Shafeeg’s (1994) review, relatively little has been published on Maldivian *LESSER W HISTLING-DUCK Dendrocygna javanica birds. There have been some local reports on seabirds, One captive individual was photographed on V. Felidhoo emphasizing their importance to the local tuna fishery in June 2000 by RCA and Samee Mohamed Rasheed. and the need for their conservation (Adam 1994, It was reported to have been caught on the island’s Anderson 1996, Bluepeace 1996, Rasheed 1999). The lagoon in April 2000. It is presumed to have been a presence of seabirds enables local fishermen to locate vagrant. 68 R. C. ANDERSON & M. BALDOCK Forktail 17 (2001) GARGANEY Anas querquedula COMMON MOORHEN Gallinula chloropus Flocks of about 12 birds were recorded on 4 April 1999 A minimum of two and a maximum of four individuals (by RCA) and on 11 March 2000 (by RCA and MB) were seen at the saltwater lake at the north end of S. on the saltwater lake at the north end of S. Hithadhoo. Hithadhoo by both authors on 11 March 2000. Single A winter visitor not previously recorded later than individuals were seen by RCA at the same site on both January (Ash and Shafeeg 1994). 25 and 30 May 2000. It was previously known in the Maldives only from Fuvah Mulaku Atoll (Ash and **COMMON KINGFISHER Alcedo atthis Shafeeg 1994, Rasheed 1999). Lamsfuss (1998) recorded this species from the Maldives, but without giving details. His record was *SPOTTED REDSHANK Tringa erythropus based on a definite sighting from K. Meerufenfushi in One individual in non-breeding plumage was seen on November 1996 by M. J. and J. P. Pointon (G. Lamsfuss, the beach of Lh. Veyvah on 17 February 1999 by RCA, in litt. April 2001). Prior to this, Moutou (1985; Ash MB and Ian Rowlands. Its legs were bright orange-red, and Shafeeg 1994) noted a kingfisher at K. Lhosfushi the bill was straight, and it had no white wing patches; in January 1984, which he regarded as being possibly of it gave a characteristic chew-it call. this species. Another Common Kingfisher was seen and video-taped at the brackish water lagoon of Sh. MARSH SANDPIPER Tringa stagnatilis Medukumburudhoo on 7 and 8 January 1999, by RCA, A flock of 10-12 birds was seen at the saltwater lake at Hussein Zahir and Ibrahim Naeem. Its ear-coverts were the north end of S. Hithadhoo by both authors on 11 orange, and the crown and upper wings were more blue March 2000. A single individual was seen by RCA at than greenish-blue, suggesting that this individual was the same site on 22 May 2000. It had previously been of the subspecies A. a. taprobana from southern India recorded in the Maldives only in September and October and Sri Lanka (Ali and Ripley 1987). A further (Strickland and Jenner 1978, Ash and Shafeeg 1994). individual, reported to be of this species, but not seen by the authors, was captured at K. Hulhule in January SANDERLING Calidris alba 1998 (Hussein Zahir, Marine Research Centre, verbally, We have records from G. A. Hithaadhoo (one individual, January 1999). With all sightings to date being in 15 March 2000, by RCA and MB), Lh. Veyvah (three November or January, it seems likely that this species is individuals, 17 and 18 February 1999, by RCA and MB) an uncommon northern winter visitor. and Lh. Veligandu, a sandbank south-west of Lh. Kuredhoo (one, 30 March 2000, by RCA). It had **ROSE-RINGED PARAKEET Psittacula krameri previously been recorded only from S. Gan (Ash and Ash and Shafeeg (1994) noted that many reports from Shafeeg 1994). over the years of unidentified parakeets suggested that either there was a small resident population in the LITTLE STINT Calidris minuta Maldives or that immigrants were occurring. They were A flock of 10-12 birds was seen by RCA and MB at the unable to confirm the species involved beyond noting lake at the north end of S. Hithadhoo on 11 March that one escaped Rose-ringed Parakeet had been 2000. It had previously been recorded only from captured and photographed in Malé Atoll in 1981. November to January (Ash and Shafeeg 1994). However, the presence of the Rose-ringed Parakeet on Malé had been noted by Webb (1988). Grimmett et al. TEMMINCK’S STINT Calidris temminckii (1998) recorded Rose-ringed Parakeet as introduced to One individual was seen on 30 May 2000 by RCA at the Maldives. A small population of Rose-ringed the lake at the north end of S. Hithadhoo. Phillips (1963) Parakeets has indeed been resident on Malé since at noted a single Temminck’s Stint on Addu Atoll on 26 least 1984 (RCA pers. obs.), and probably for several May 1958, which he considered to be a possible non- years before that (Ahmed Hafiz, Marine Research breeding loiterer. However, these late birds may well Centre, verbally December 1999). This population was have been passage migrants (Ash and Shafeeg 1994). almost certainly not established as far back as 1956- 1957. It was not noted by Fosberg (1957), and, more *RED-NECKED/RED PHALAROPE Phalaropus lobatus/fulicaria convincingly, it would have been most unlikely to have One individual was seen by RCA, MB and Ian Rowlands escaped the notice of W. W. A. Phillips during his stay in on 21 February 1999, to the north of Haa Alifu Atoll at Malé.