Forbes's blackbird (''Anumara forbesi'') is an endangered species of

New World blackbird Icterids () or New World blackbirds make up a family, the Icteridae (), of small to medium-sized, often colorful, New World passerine birds. Most species have black as a predominant plumage color, often enlivened by yellow, orange, or red. The ...

that is endemic to the

Atlantic forest The Atlantic Forest ( pt, Mata Atlântica) is a South American forest that extends along the Atlantic coast of Brazil from Rio Grande do Norte state in the northeast to Rio Grande do Sul state in the south and inland as far as Paraguay and th ...

in South America. This species was named for the British zoologist

William Alexander Forbes William Alexander Forbes (25 June 1855 – 14 January 1883) was an English zoologist. He was the son of James Staats Forbes (1823–1904). Forbes studied natural sciences at St John's College, Cambridge, and later taught at Rhodes College ( ...

Identification

Forbes's blackbird is an average sized

icterid Icterids () or New World blackbirds make up a family, the Icteridae (), of small to medium-sized, often colorful, New World passerine birds. Most species have black as a predominant plumage color, often enlivened by yellow, orange, or red. The ...

around 21–24 cm with all black, non-glossy feathers. It has a slender, arrow-shaped bill with a straight culmen, equal to the length of its head. It has a long, slender tail with rounded feathers. As a perching bird it has an

anisodactyl In biology, dactyly is the arrangement of digits (fingers and toes) on the hands, feet, or sometimes wings of a tetrapod animal. It comes from the Greek word δακτυλος (''dáktylos'') = "finger". Sometimes the ending "-dactylia" is use ...

toe arrangement with three toes facing forward and one back. It has a harsh and buzzy call and chatters. It is often mistaken for the

chopi blackbird The chopi blackbird (''Gnorimopsar chopi'') is a species of bird in the family Icteridae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Gnorimopsar''. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. Its natural habitats are dry sava ...

(''Gnorimopsar chopi''), which can be distinguished by its glossy feathers and a distinct curve in the culmen of the beak.

Life History

Forbes's blackbird had an average lifespan of 4.6 years. It can eat insects, fruit and occasionally nectar from flowering plants or

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with ...

. Its breeding season ranges from March to June, during the rainy season. Nests are most commonly found in mango trees (''Mangifera indica''). Egg clutch sizes can range between 1-4 eggs and it can have up to two clutches during the breeding season. After nest completion it can take anywhere between 4 and 10 days until egg laying starts. It is estimated that the population does not exceed 10,000 mature individuals.

Habitat and Range

Forbes's blackbird is a

non-migratory Bird migration is the regular seasonal movement, often north and south along a flyway, between breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of bird migrate. Migration carries high costs in predation and mortality, including from hunting by ...

species found in east and north-east Brazil in small and very fragmented habitats. Its natural habitats are

subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests (TSMF), also known as tropical moist forest, is a subtropical and tropical forest habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Description TSMF is generally found in large, discont ...

, subtropical or tropical seasonally wet or flooded lowland grassland, and plantations. The largest grouping found 150 individuals at Pedra Talhada, Alagoas. There are anywhere between 2-100 subpopulations, all of which are experiencing a continued decline of mature individuals. It has been found in small numbers around sugar cane plantations and pastures adjacent to forest patches and marshy areas. In the wild it primarily inhabits forest edge areas.

Threats

The greatest threat to Forbes's blackbird is widespread habitat destruction and degradation. It is estimated that roughly 10% of forest from the species range was lost between 2000–2012. The degradation has even reduced the amount of forest edge habitat available. Much of the destroyed forest has been converted to sugar cane plantations which the local populations may be able to withstand. Decline in population size has also been attributed to reduced reproductive success due to brood parasitism from the shiny cowbird (''Molothrus bonariensis''). Nests observed from 1981-1986 has a parasitism rate of 64%, and in 1987 all nests studied were parasitized by the shiny cowbird. It has also been observed in trade due to confusion with the chopi blackbird which is valued in trade.

Conservation

Forbes's blackbird is officially recognized as

Vulnerable Vulnerable may refer to: General * Vulnerability * Vulnerability (computing) * Vulnerable adult * Vulnerable species Music Albums * ''Vulnerable'' (Marvin Gaye album), 1997 * ''Vulnerable'' (Tricky album), 2003 * ''Vulnerable'' (The Used album) ...

in Brazil. It is legally protected in

Rio Doce State Park The Rio Doce State Park ( pt, Parque Estadual do Rio Doce) is a state park in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. It protects a large remnant of Atlantic Forest, and includes a system of lagoons rich in species of native fish. Location The Rio D ...

and Pedra Telhada Biological Reserve where protection is enforced by guards, however the species mostly occur outside these areas. At Pedra Telhada experiments are being performed on destroying shiny cowbird eggs that have parasitized blackbird nests. Currently there are no further protections in place to protect this species.

References

#BirdLife International. 2017. Anumara forbesi. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017: e.T22724274A119070155. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T22724274A119070155.en. #Tracewski, L., Butchart, S.H.M., Di Marco, M., Ficetola, G.F., Rondinini, C., Symes, A., Wheatley, H., Beresford, A.E. and Buchanan, G.M. 2016. Toward quantification of the impact of 21st-century deforestation on the extinction risk of terrestrial vertebrates. ''Conservation Biology''. #Silveira, L.F. and Straube, F.C. 2008. Aves. In: Machado, A.B.M., Drummond, G.M. and Paglia, A.P. (eds), Livro vermelho da fauna brasileira ameaçada de extinção. Vol. 2, pp. 378–679. Ministério do Meio Ambiente, Brasília & Fundação Biodiversitas. , Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q27076021 Forbes's blackbird Forbes's blackbird Birds of the Atlantic Forest Endemic birds of Brazil Forbes's blackbird Forbes's blackbird Taxonomy articles created by Polbot