Hummingbird Conservation in Mexico: The Natural Protected Areas System Author(s): M.C. Arizmendi, H. Berlanga, C. Rodríguez-Flores, V. Vargas-Canales, L. Montes-Leyva and R. Lira Source: Natural Areas Journal, 36(4):366-376. Published By: Natural Areas Association DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3375/043.036.0404 URL: http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.3375/043.036.0404 BioOne (www.bioone.org) is a nonprofit, online aggregation of core research in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences. BioOne provides a sustainable online platform for over 170 journals and books published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses. Your use of this PDF, the BioOne Web site, and all posted and associated content indicates your acceptance of BioOne’s Terms of Use, available at www.bioone.org/page/terms_of_use. Usage of BioOne content is strictly limited to personal, educational, and non-commercial use. Commercial inquiries or rights and permissions requests should be directed to the individual publisher as copyright holder. BioOne sees sustainable scholarly publishing as an inherently collaborative enterprise connecting authors, nonprofit publishers, academic institutions, research libraries, and research funders in the common goal of maximizing access to critical research. ABSTRACT: Hummingbirds represent an avian family restricted to the Americas that feeds mainly on nectar obtained from ornithophilous plants. In North America (Mexico-USA-Canada), 58 species have been reported out of the 330 total hummingbird species, all of them occurring in Mexico. In this work • we analyzed the distribution of hummingbirds in relation to the coverage of the natural protected area system in Mexico using a complementarity analysis to assess the minimum set of areas needed to protect all species. We focused our search mainly to biosphere reserves, as these areas have complete bird lists. Hummingbird Six biosphere reserves included 93% of the hummingbird species. Four species were not included in any biosphere reserve or other natural protected area. To preserve those species, three important bird areas Conservation in (AICAs as they are known in Spanish) are needed. With these nine areas, all hummingbird species are included. Hummingbird distributions can be classified in six groups that distribute following the major biogeographic regions described for Mexico, including groups using; (1) the main mountain ranges, Mexico: The Natural (2) the Pacific tropical dry forests, (3) the Gulf of Mexico slopes with tropical dry forest, (4) the humid tropical forest in southern Mexico, and both (5) Yucatan and (6) Baja California peninsulas. Protected Areas Index terms: AICA, biosphere reserves, endemic species, hummingbird conservation, Mexico System INTRODUCTION hummingbird fauna of North America. From these nine are Neotropical migrants M.C. Arizmendi1,3 that breed in the United States and Canada Hummingbirds represent a New World and have their wintering grounds in Mex- 1Unidad de Biología Tecnología bird family comprising approximately 330 ico, including, for example, Selasphorus y Prototipos species. They are small birds (2.5–24 g) that rufus Gmelin, JF, S. platycercus Swainson, FES Iztacala, UNAM. Av. De los feed on nectar obtained from flowers using and Archilochus colubris L. Tropical spe- Barrios 1 long bills and protrusible tongues and also cies, such as hermits (Phaethornis spp.) Los Reyes Iztacala México 54090 feed to some extent on insects (Arizmendi and mangos (Colibri thalassinus Swain- México and Berlanga 2014). Hummingbirds visit a son, Anthracotorax prevostii Lesson) are large number of wildflowers and pollinate distributed mainly in Mexican southern many of them (Arizmendi and Rodriguez tropical forests. Endemic species com- H. Berlanga2 Flores 2012). They also pollinate some prise an important group with species of cultivated plants that are important both very small distribution, such as Lophornis C. Rodríguez-Flores1 ecologically and economically for humans, brachylophus Moore, RT, distributed only 2 V. Vargas-Canales such as pineapples (Cabral et al. 2000; in 50 km2 of temperate forests at Guerrero, L. Montes-Leyva1 Carlier et al. 2007). For some plant species, or Eupherusa polyocerca Elliot and Eu- such as some Heliconia, Datura, Fuchsia pherusa cyanophrys Rowley & Orr with R. Lira1 species, hummingbirds are the exclusive 4000 and 4100 km2 in Guerrero and Oaxaca pollinators, being the only ones responsible México (del Hoyo et al. 2014). Of the 58 2NABCI CONABIO for their sexual reproduction (i.e., Altshuler species represented in Mexico, six are Liga Periférico - Insurgentes Sur and Clark 2003). For others, they repre- considered endangered at the global level Núm. 4903 sent part of a wider array of pollinators (IUCN 2015)—all of them endemics with a Col. Parques del Pedregal (Arizmendi and Rodríguez-Flores 2012). restricted range (Berlanga et al. 2008). The Delegación Tlalpan, 14010 However, for other plants, hummingbirds main threat for Mexican hummingbirds is México, D.F. may not represent a benefit as pollinators; habitat loss and fragmentation (Arizmendi in some cases, they can rob nectar without and Berlanga 2014). contacting plant reproductive structures • (i.e., Arizmendi et al. 1996; Arizmendi Mexico has a national Natural Protected 2001). In addition to their ecological Areas System that includes biosphere 3 Corresponding author: [email protected]; importance, hummingbirds have always reserves, national monuments, national 521-5556237002 been important to human culture (i.e., parks, as well as other state protected areas Mazariegos 2010), representing gods, soul (SINAP www.conanp.gob.mx). The whole carriers, and fecundity among prehispanic system comprises 177 areas and 25,628,239 societies, as well as good luck, love, and ha of the country’s territory. wellness, even in modern societies. The purpose of this work was to analyze In Mexico, 58 species have been described the opportunities and threats to humming- Natural Areas Journal 36:366–376 (Arbelaez and Navarro 2014; Arizmendi bird conservation in México considering and Berlanga 2014) representing all the protection provided by the Mexican Natural 366 Natural Areas Journal Volume 36 (4), 2016 Protected Areas System, and in the context dangered, such as Atthis eliotti Ridgway, 2). Selva el Ocote is a big area situated in of both national and international laws. mainly because they can be considered Central Chiapas in southern Mexico. It is locally abundant. Ten species are migrants an area with an altitudinal range from 180 (17.2%), of which five are long distance to 1500 m and with 10 vegetation types METHODS migrants that breed in the northern United represented, mainly Tropical Deciduous States and Canada and spend the winter in Forest, Tropical Semi-deciduous Forest, Conservation status both at the national and Mexico and Central America. Humid Forest, Oak and Pine-Oak Forests, international level for hummingbird species and Cloud Forest (SEMARNAT/CONANP was assessed using available information Hummingbirds are widely distributed in 2001). Its hummingbird fauna reflects at avesmx (Berlanga et al. 2008). For the the country, being reported in 146 (out of this habitat variation. Species present 58 Mexican species, the distributional the 171) Natural Protected Areas, includ- include the tropical humid forest related status (endemic, quasiendemic, resident, or ing all the biosphere reserves (41). Of the species such as Campylopterus excellens migrant) was determined using literature 58 species, only three are not included in Wetmore, C. rufus Lesson, Lamprolaima (Howell and Webb 1995; Arizmendi and any biosphere reserve or natural protected rhami Lesson, Abeillia abeillei Lesson Berlanga 2014), distributional databases area: Lophornis brachylophus, Eupherusa & Delattre, and Florisuga mellivora L., (averAves, eBird), and personal data. Bio- cyanophrys, and Eupherusa poliocerca. sub-humid and dry forest species such as sphere reserves and Important Bird Areas These three species are highly restricted Heliomaster constantii Delattre or Amazilia were included as they have complete bird (Figure 1) and, therefore, threatened by yucatanensis Cabot, but also species typical lists. Complementarity analysis for com- habitat destruction and fragmentation. They of the temperate forests (Pine-oak, Pine pletion of the minimum set of protected are included in two declared Important and Cloud forests) such as Amazilia be- areas needed to achieve all hummingbird Bird Areas: Sierra de Atoyac (Lophornis ryllina Deppe, Eugenes fulgens Swainson, conservation was carried out. We used the brachylophus and Eupherusa poliocerca), Hylocharis leucotis Vieillot, and Colibri method proposed by Possingham et al. and Sierra de Miahuatlán (Eupherusa thalassinus. In this area it is possible to find (1993) and performed by other authors cyanophrys). 55% of all the species found in Mexico. The for different plant groups from Mexico next area chosen by the complementarity (i.e., Lira et al. 2002; Villaseñor et al. Complementarity analysis showed that it is analysis is Sierra de Manantlán, which 1998). A data matrix was prepared with enough to preserve six biosphere reserves contributed 15 additional species. Sierra presence/absence data of the 58 humming- and three Mexican IBAs (AICAs) to have de Manantlán is a biosphere reserve sit- bird species in the 51 protected areas (41 all hummingbird species (58 species) at uated in western Mexico in the mountain biosphere reserves and