>> FEATURE IMPORTANT BIRD AREAS OF THE NEOTROPICS: ECUADOR Important Bird Areas of the Neotropics: Ecuador Juan F. Freile, Diego F. Cisneros-Heredia, Tatiana Santander, Kerem A. Boyla and David Díaz The rare, little-known and localised Empress Brilliant Heliodoxa imperatrix can be found at Los Bancos-Milpe IBA (Nick Athanas/Tropical Birding) Our fifth article on the Important Bird Areas of the Neotropics introduces us into the 4splendidNeotropical geography Birding and 7 avifauna of South America’s smallest megadiverse country. Clockwise from top: The Critically Endangered Yellow-eared Parrot Ognorhynchus icterotis is apparently extinct in Ecuador; a tiny hope exists of relocating it (Murray Cooper) Recently found in Ecuador, the Peruvian Pigeon Patagioenas oenops has its largest population in the Peruvian side of the Marañón Valley (Nick Athanas/Tropical Birding) Map of Ecuador showing all 107 IBAs. Colours indicate different biogeographic regions. Labeled IBAs are those mentioned in the text. For further information consult recent publications6,9 Neotropical Birding 7 5 >> FEATURE IMPORTANT BIRD AREAS OF THE NEOTROPICS: ECUADOR Ecuador: land of birds little natural habitat remains. Many species have paid the price, including Plumbeous Forest cuador, one of the ornithologically richest Falcon Micrastur plumbeus (Vulnerable), Pacific countries on the globe, houses over 1,600 8 2 Royal Flycatcher Onycorhynchus (coronatus) E species in less than 260,000 km (about occidentalis (Vulnerable) and Scarlet-breasted the size of the United Kingdom). !is situation is Dacnis Dacnis berlepschi (Vulnerable). !e repeated for nearly all major life forms: Ecuador is western forests along the extensive río Guayas a centre of megadiversity concentrated in a pill. floodplain are almost completely gone, whereas Political endemism in mainland Ecuador is Chocó jungles to the north are rapidly diminishing low due to the country’s small size, but it includes due to large-scale timber extraction. Likewise, awesome species like Black-breasted Puffleg inappropriate agricultural practices (slash-and- Eriocnemis nigrivestis (Critically Endangered), burn and extensive use of fire) are destroying El Oro Parakeet Pyrrhura orcesi (Endangered) Andean forests, scrub and páramo, as well as and Violet-throated Metaltail Metallura baroni forests in the south-west, where range-restricted (Endangered), in addition to 26 species endemic to 8 species like Red-faced Parrot Hapalopsittaca the oceanic province of Galapagos . Furthermore, pyrrhops (Vulnerable) and El Oro Tapaculo Ecuador harbours a high number of ‘regional Scytalopus robbinsi (Endangered) coexist8,9. endemics’ confined to particular Endemic Bird 15 !e oil industry and mining concessions play Areas (EBAs) . Ten such areas include over 150 an unchecked role through severe water pollution mainland endemics, like Five-colored Barbet and habitat destruction. Concurrently, new roads Capito quinticolor (Vulnerable), Velvet-purple are continuously being opened in fragile areas, Coronet Boissonneaua jardini and Chestnut- triggering further colonisation and consequent bellied Cotinga Doliornis remseni (Vulnerable). habitat degradation, threatening birds such as In the west, the coastal lowlands alone Cinnamon-breasted Tody-Tyrant Hemitriccus harbour more than 100 regional endemic cinnamomeipectus (Near !reatened, endemic to species, as the north is characterised by humid the Cordillera del Cóndor) and Orange-crested to wet Chocó forests and the south by a complex Manakin Heterocercus aurantiivertex (endemic assortment of xeric to deciduous forests and to the black-water forests of western Amazonia1). scrub, with various semideciduous habitats In Galapagos, habitat loss is less extensive but in the intervening area. !e eastern lowlands introduced species (predators, disease vectors, are carpeted by vast Amazonian forests, with parasites, competitors, habitat modifiers), little endemism but an astonishing diversity, 1 unsustainable practices (e.g. long-line fisheries), including c.600 species found at a single site! and political turmoil are driving the unique Furthermore, the complexity of the Andes has Galapagos avifauna to a critical situation17. produced an outstanding gradient of ecosystems, from wet and tall foothill forests, to stunted, ... and some actions: moss-laden Andean forests, capped by grassy, shrubby or even dry and barren páramos. !e Ecuador’s Important Bird Area Ecuadorian Andes, with roughly 800 species, is programme the richest area in Ecuador. Finally, the relatively low species richness of the Galapagos (c.160 Bird conservation in Ecuador is challenging. species) is countered by its high endemism16. One important step was the identification of Important Bird Areas (IBAs)9 as part of the A megadiverse country with tropical Andes regional initiative4. Although a large amount of data on Ecuadorian birds many threats... have been published11,13, no previous efforts Large-scale, exportation-oriented agriculture is had focused on the identification of such IBAs. the primary cause of habitat loss in continental During 2003 Aves&Conservación (BirdLife in Ecuador, threatening up to 15% of its avifauna, Ecuador), BirdLife’s Regional Office, Conservation and leaving most Ecuadorian endemic species on International and the Ministry of Environment the brink of extinction3,10. Even though Ecuador of Ecuador began the identification of IBAs. !is has an official National Protected Areas Network process included extensive review of published (SNAP) covering about 20% of its territory7, literature, and a continuous interaction between efforts are still insufficient to guarantee the ornithologists, academic institutions and conservation of the country’s rich biodiversity, environmental organisations, through a number particularly in the coastal lowlands where very of meetings and workshops. !e final result: a 6 Neotropical Birding 7 list of 107 IBAs9, 37 of which were postulated forests, and arid scrub; it has the highest number by landowners, communities and NGOs. of IBAs (28) reflecting its critical situation. !ree formally protected areas: Machalilla National Ecuadorian IBAs: an overview Park (EC017), Manglares-Churute (EC029) and !e 107 IBAs in Ecuador cover 35.7% of its Arenillas Ecological Reserves (EC035), and nine territory and harbour 99 threatened and Near private reserves, such as Bosque Protector Cerro !reatened species, 69 EBA endemics, 44 Blanco (EC026) are keystone conservation sites. species restricted to Neotropical biomes and 24 !ese IBAs are important for the sought-after congregatory species. Ten IBAs are located in the Esmeraldas Woodstar, Blackish-headed Spinetail Galapagos Islands and 97 in continental Ecuador. Synallaxis tithys (Endangered), Slaty Becard Twenty-five IBAs are completely protected Pachyramphus spodiurus (Endangered) and within the National Protected Areas Network Saffron Siskin Carduelis siemiradzkii (Vulnerable). (which currently includes private reserves and A total of 26 threatened and Near !reatened protection forests), 60 are partially protected, species and all of the species confined to the while 22 are not protected at all14. IBAs are rather Equatorial Pacific Coast biome and Tumbesian evenly distributed throughout Ecuador, but EBA inhabit these IBAs. Several Tumbesian IBAs more sites are on the northern Andean slopes are important for aquatic birds, namely Ecuasal- and in the south-western deciduous forests. Salinas Lagoons (EC020), La Segua Marshes (EC013), and Manglares-Churute Ecological An adventure into Reserve. Rare and threatened species include Pinnated Bittern Botaurus pinnatus, Brown Wood Ecuadorian IBAs Rail Aramides wolfi (Vulnerable) and Elegant Breathtaking cotingas, tiny-winged jewels like Tern !alasseus elegans (Near !reatened). the endemic Esmeraldas Woodstar Chaetocercus !e south-west highlands, covered in wet, berlepschi (Endangered), skillful dancers, petit semi-deciduous and deciduous forests include raptors, and mysterious singers like the near- eight IBAs, whose precarious situation is caused endemic Cocha Antshrike !amnophilus praecox by intensive agricultural expansion, cattle ranching (Near !reatened), are but a sample of the and timber extraction2. Reserva Buenaventura amazing diversity contained within Ecuadorian (EC071), Utuana-Bosque de Hanne (EC079), IBAs. With so many species, and so many IBAs, La Tagua (EC074) and Daucay (EC070) IBAs we could fill an entire issue of Neotropical Birding! are the few sites, if not the only ones, where Obviously, we will not. Instead, we review some you will find the localised El Oro Parakeet, key IBAs, with the aim of inviting readers to El Oro Tapaculo and the rare Grey-headed undertake their next birding trip to those areas. Antbird Myrmeciza griseiceps (Vulnerable). !e Chocó lowland and premontane forests In the northern Andes, subtropical and are covered by 12 IBAs, just five of them large montane forests, páramos and wetlands are (>60,000 ha) and extensively forested. Twenty- covered by 26 IBAs, encompassing 12 officially nine threatened and Near !reatened species protected areas, several small private reserves inhabit these IBAs, along with all the Chocó and some unprotected areas. !e first IBA to endemics, and are home to Harpy Eagle Harpia be designated in tropical America, Mindo y harpyja (Near !reatened), the elusive Great Estribaciones Occidentales del Volcán Pichincha Curassow Crax rubra (Vulnerable) and Great (EC043, formerly Mindo IBA) holds the largest Green Macaw Ara ambiguus (Endangered) in known population of