13 2 2066 the journal of biodiversity data 15 March 2017 Check List LISTS OF SPECIES Check List 13(2): 2066, 15 March 2017 doi: https://doi.org/10.15560/13.2.2066 ISSN 1809-127X © 2017 Check List and Authors Avifaunal inventory of Laysan Island, Hawaii, USA Cameron L. Rutt School of Renewable Natural Resources, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70803, USA E-mail:
[email protected] Abstract: Here I present a 6-month bird inventory of MATERIALS AND METHODS Laysan (25.776° N, 171.733° W), a coral island in the North- Study site western Hawaiian Islands. Forty-four species belonging to 17 families were recorded, including six globally threatened Located in the Central Pacific, Laysan (25.7755° N, species. Three species new to Laysan were found: Tringa 171.7333° W) is a coral island situated within the Papa- brevipes, Tringa glareola, and Larus hyperboreus. This study hānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. Among expands upon previous ornithological coverage of the the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, it is second in island, the majority of which has been partial, transitory, size to Midway Atoll’s Sand Island, and encompasses 2 or historical. approximately 3.7 km (Ely & Clapp 1973; Taylor 2003). The island is relatively flat with a maximum elevation of Key words: birds; Northwestern Hawaiian Islands 12 m (Ely & Clapp 1973). From an avian perspective, the island consists roughly of three major habitats: INTRODUCTION 1) Rocky coastlines and fringing white sand beaches, which, at places, rise to interior sand dunes. In all, 317 species of birds have been recorded from the 2) A hypersaline lake and its associated bare saline Hawaiian Islands, including 28 extant endemics (Pratt et mudflats in the center of the island.