Hi All,
The birds of Christmas Island, Indian Ocean: A review by David James
and Ian McAllan has just been published in the journal Australian
Field Ornithology. This is a comprehensive review (180 pages) and a
significant contribution to ornithology in the region. I expect it
will be of great interest to many on birding-aus and is a must-have
for anyone planning to visit the island. The summary is copied below.
A pdf of the review is freely available on the Birdlife Australia
website at:
http://birdlife.org.au/documents/AFO-Christmas_Island_Supplement-2014.pdf
SUMMARY This paper is an account of all known records of birds from
Christmas Island in the eastern Indian Ocean. It also includes reviews
of the history of the Island’s ornithology, its avian biogeography,
the taxonomy of selected endemic taxa, population estimates of
resident species, and current and past threats to its birds. One
hundred and forty-nine species of birds have been recorded from the
Island, of which 14 are breeding landbirds, nine are breeding
seabirds, 18 are rare visitors and 108 are vagrant species. The Island
has a high degree of endemism and this is expressed in the avifauna
through 11 endemic taxa among the 23 breeding species.
Biogeographically, Christmas Island is an oceanic island, with
breeding and visiting species originating from several sources
including South-East Asia, Australia, the Palaearctic, pelagic, and
other undetermined sources. Links to the Greater Sunda Islands and
Wallacea are very minor. The Island was first occupied by humans in
1888. Since then, three bird species have been introduced (two
deliberately) and four have self-colonised. No bird taxa have become
extinct locally, despite several extinctions of other endemic and
indigenous fauna. However, numerous threatening processes are placing
increasing pressure on native birds.
Cheers,
Rohan
--
Rohan Clarke
www.wildlifeimages.com.au
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