Niels Kaare Krabbe (born 1 July 1951) is an
ornithologist and
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...
conservationist for many years based at the Vertebrate Department of the Zoological Museum,
University of Copenhagen
The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public research university in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia after Uppsala Unive ...
and tutored by
Jon Fjeldså. His research interests include various aspects of
ornithology
Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...
, especially
bioacoustics
Bioacoustics is a cross-disciplinary science that combines biology and acoustics. Usually it refers to the investigation of sound production, dispersion and reception in animals (including humans). This involves neurophysiological and anatomical ...
,
conservation
Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws.
Conservation may also refer to:
Environment and natural resources
* Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...
, and systematics and altitudinal replacements of ''
Scytalopus
''Scytalopus'' is a genus of small passerine birds belonging to the tapaculo group. They are found in South and Central America from Tierra del Fuego to Costa Rica, but are absent from the Amazon Basin. They inhabit dense vegetation at or near gr ...
''
tapaculo
The tapaculos or tapacolos are a family, Rhinocryptidae, of small suboscine passerine birds, found mainly in South America and with the highest diversity in the Andean regions. Three species ( Chocó, Tacarcuna, and the silvery-fronted) are ...
s. He has worked extensively in the
Andes
The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...
, especially
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ' ...
, and wrote the
passerine
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
section of ''Birds of the High Andes'' (1990) and the accounts of most Andean species in ''Threatened Birds of the Americas'' (1992). He has helped build up a large tissue collection in the Zoological Museum and has authored or coauthored several bioacoustic publications and peer-reviewed papers in scientific journals.
Since 1998 he has worked with
Fundación de Conservación Jocotoco on conservation of Ecuadorian birds, paying special attention to the
pale-headed brush-finch (''Atlapetes pallidiceps''), for which he had searched for several years. The species was feared extinct, but he finally found a small population in 1998. Only 10–22 pairs remained, but owing to conservation efforts, it is now recuperating, with c. 100 pairs counted since 2009, when the reserve became saturated with territories.
Bird species described by or with Niels Krabbe
*
Choco tapaculo (''Scytalopus chocoensis'') (1997)
*
Chusquea tapaculo (''Scytalopus parkeri'') (1997)
*
Ecuadorian tapaculo
The Ecuadorian tapaculo or El Oro tapaculo (''Scytalopus robbinsi'') is a small passerine bird belonging to the genus ''Scytalopus'', a genus of tapaculos. It is restricted to a small area in south-western Ecuador and was not described until 19 ...
or El Oro tapaculo (''Scytalopus robbinsi'') (1997)
*
Jocotoco antpitta
The jocotoco antpitta (''Grallaria ridgelyi'') is an endangered antpitta, a bird from Ecuador and Peru. It was discovered in 1997, and scientifically described in 1999.
Description
The jocotoco antpitta is a large (150–200 g) antpitta ...
(''Grallaria ridgelyi'') (1999)
*
Brown-backed antwren or Yasuni antwren (''Myrmotherula fjeldsaai'') (1999)
*
Foothill elaenia (''Myiopagis olallae'') (2001)
*
Magdalena tapaculo (''Scytalopus rodriguezi'') (2005)
*
Stiles's tapaculo (''Scytalopus stilesi'') (2005)
*
Santa Marta screech-owl (''Megascops gilesi'') (2017)
*
Blue-throated hillstar
The blue-throated hillstar (''Oreotrochilus cyanolaemus'') is a hummingbird found only in a small portion of the southwestern Andes in Ecuador. It was discovered in 2017.
Taxonomy and evolution
The species name "cyanolaemus" is based on the Lat ...
(''Oreotrochilus cyanolaemus'') (2018)
*
Ampay tapaculo (''Scytalopus whitneyi'') (2020)
*
White-tailed cisticola (''Cisticola anderseni'') (2021)
*
Kilombero cisticola (''Cisticola bakerorum'') (2021)
Bird subspecies described by or with Niels Krabbe
*
Slender-billed miner (''Geositta tenuirostris kalimayae'') (1992)
*
Black-striped sparrow (''Arremonops conirostris pastazae'') (2008)
*
Paramo tapaculo (''Scytalopus opacus androstictus'') (2010)
*
Amazilia hummingbird
The amazilia hummingbird (''Amazilis amazilia'') is a hummingbird in the "emeralds", tribe Trochilini of subfamily Trochilinae. It is the only species placed in the genus ''Amazilis''. It is found in Ecuador and Peru. Its six subspecies diffe ...
(''Amazilia amazilia azuay'') (2010)
*
Koepcke's screech-owl (''Megascops koepckeae hockingi'') (2012)
Some ornithological taxonomic changes by or with Niels Krabbe
*
Andean siskin
The Andean siskin (''Spinus spinescens'') is a species of finch in the family Fringillidae. It is found in Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist montane forests, subtropical or tropical high-al ...
(''Sporagra spinescens capitanea'') (1994)
*
Trilling tapaculo (''Scytalopus parvirostris'') (1997)
*
Long-tailed tapaculo (''Scytalopus micropterus'') (1997)
*
Bolivian tapaculo (''Scytalopus bolivianus'') (1997)
*
White-crowned tapaculo (''Scytalopus atratus'') (1997)
*
Santa Marta tapaculo (''Scytalopus sanctaemartae'') (1997)
*
Silvery-fronted tapaculo (''Scytalopus argentifrons chiriquensis'') (1997)
*
Nariño tapaculo (''Scytalopus vicinior'') (1997)
*
Mérida tapaculo (''Scytalopus meridanus'') (1997)
*
Caracas tapaculo (''Scytalopus caracae'') (1997)
*
Spillmann's tapaculo (''Scytalopus spillmanni'') (1997)
*
White-browed tapaculo (''Scytalopus superciliaris'') (1997)
*
Zimmer's tapaculo (''Scytalopus zimmeri'') (1997)
*
Puna tapaculo (''Scytalopus simonsi'') (1997)
*
Vilcabamba tapaculo (''Scytalopus urubambae'') (1997)
*
Neblina tapaculo (''Scytalopus altirostris'') (1997)
*
Ancash tapaculo (''Scytalopus affinis'') (1997)
*
Paramillo tapaculo
The Paramillo tapaculo (''Scytalopus canus'') is a species of bird in the family Rhinocryptidae.
Taxonomy
It has traditionally included the more widespread '' S. opacus'' as a subspecies, but under the common name Paramo tapaculo (a name now us ...
(''Scytalopus canus'') (1997)
*
Pale-bellied tapaculo (''Scytalopus griseicollis'') (1997)
*
Dusky tapaculo (''Scytalopus fuscus'') (1997)
*
Tschudi's tapaculo (''Scytalopus acutirostris'') (1997)
*
Blackish tapaculo (''Scytalopus latrans'') (2001)
*
Kalinowski's tinamou
The ornate tinamou (''Nothoprocta ornata'') is a type of tinamou commonly found in the high altitude grassland and dry shrubland in subtropical and tropical regions of west central South America.Clements, J. (2007)
Etymology
''Nothoprocta'' come ...
(''Nothoprocta kalinowskii'') (2005)
*
Dusky starfrontlet (''Coeligena orina'') (2005)
*
Rufous-vented whitetip (''Urosticte ruficrissa'') (2006)
*
Santa Marta foliage-gleaner (''Clibanornis rufipectus'') (2008)
*
Paramo tapaculo (''Scytalopus opacus'') (2010)
*
Riparian antbird (''Cercomacra fuscicauda'') (2014)
*
Taczanowski's brush-finch (''Atlapetes taczanowskii'') (2015)
*
Choco brushfinch (''Atlapetes crassus'') (2015)
*
Coopmans's elaenia (''Elaenia brachyptera'') (2015)
Publications authored or coauthored by Niels Krabbe
Books:
* Fjeldså, J. & Krabbe, N. 1990. ''Birds of the high Andes. Copenhagen'': Zoological Museum, University of Copenhagen, and Svendborg, Denmark: Apollo Books.
* Collar, N. J., Gonzaga, L. P., Krabbe, N., Madroño Nieto, A., Naranjo, L. G., Parker III, T. A. & Wege, D. C. 1992. ''Threatened Birds of the Americas''. Cambridge, U.K.: International Council for Bird Preservation.
* Krabbe, N. K. & Schulenberg, T. S. 2003. Families Formicariidae (ground antbirds) and Rhinocryptidae (tapaculos). Pp. 682 – 731 and 748 – 787 in J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott and D. Christie, eds. ''Handbook of the Birds of the World''. Vol. 8. Barcelona, Spain: Lynx Edicions.
External links
Bird songs recorded by Niels Krabbe
{{DEFAULTSORT:Krabbe, Niels
1951 births
Living people
Danish ornithologists