• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Distribution map
• Reference and further resources

Taxonomic note

Coenocorypha aucklandica, C. huegeli, C. barrierensis and C. iredalei (del Hoyo and Collar 2014) were previously lumped as C. aucklandica following Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993).

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	-	-

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2022	Near Threatened	D2
2016	Near Threatened	B1ab(iii); D2
2014	Near Threatened	B1ab(iii); D2

Migratory status	not a migrant	Forest dependency	does not normally occur in forest
Land mass type		Average mass	-

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence breeding/resident (km2)	125,000	medium
Extent of Occurrence breeding/resident (km2)	740
Number of locations	11-15	-
Severely Fragmented		-

	Value	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
No. of mature individuals	20000-49999	medium	estimated	2020
Population trend	stable		estimated	-
Decline (3 years/1 generation past)		-	-	-
Decline (5 years/1 generation past)		-	-	-
Decline (10 years/1 generation past)		-	-	-
Decline (10 years/3 generation future)		-	-	-
Decline (10 years/3 generation past and future)		-	-	-
Number of subpopulations		-	-	-
Percentage in largest subpopulation		-	-	-
Generation length (yrs)	4.36	-	-	-

Population justification: Encounter rates on Adams Island were more than three times higher than in similar habitat on Antipodes Island, where snipe coexisted with mice until mice were eradicated in 2016 (Miskelly 2020). Adams Island (10,119 ha) is likely to hold tens of thousands of birds, based on recorded densities of at least 4 birds/ha on other islands, while the colonising population on Campbell is likely to number in the hundreds and be increasing. The total area occupied by the species is about 11,540 ha in the Auckland Islands, 2,060 ha in the Antipodes Islands, and about 11,000 ha on Campbell Island (Miskelly 2020). Snipe have been reported during 67–100% of visits from 1988-2018 to Rose and Enderby, and from 1972-2018 to Adams, Disappointment and Ewing Islands (Miskelly et al. 2020), indicating that it is common within its range. A preliminary estimate places the total population in the band 20,000-49,999 mature individuals which remains applicable given that the population is thought to be stable overall, but the true figure may be higher.

Trend justification: Overall, the population is thought to be stable due to the absence of predators in the current range. Despite historic declines, C. a. aucklandica is thought to have remained stable over the last three generations (Robertson et al. 2013, 2017, 2021). On Enderby Island, the frequency sightings significantly increased during 1992–2018 after the eradication of cattle, mice and rabbits (French et al. 2020). Since the eradication of rats from Campbell Island in 2001, the population of C. a. perseverance has recovered and is still thought to be increasing (Robertson et al. 2021). C. a. meinertzhagenae has increased following the eradication of mice from the Antipodes island in 2016 and is also believed to be stable, the population now reaching a higher equilibrium (Graeme Elliott, DOC, pers. obs.).

Country/Territory	Presence	Origin	Resident	Breeding	Non-breeding	Passage
New Zealand	extant	native	yes

Country/Territory	IBA Name
New Zealand	Adams Island
New Zealand	Antipodes Islands
New Zealand	Disappointment Island
New Zealand	Enderby Group

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Grassland	Subantarctic	major	resident
Shrubland	Subantarctic	major	resident
Altitude	0 - 600 m	Occasional altitudinal limits

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases	Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases - Felis catus	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Past, Unlikely to Return		Majority (50-90%)		Rapid Declines		Past Impact
		Stresses Species mortality
Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases	Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases - Rattus exulans	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Past, Unlikely to Return		Majority (50-90%)		Rapid Declines		Past Impact
		Stresses Reduced reproductive success
Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases	Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases - Sus domesticus	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Past, Unlikely to Return		Majority (50-90%)		Rapid Declines		Past Impact
		Stresses Species mortality

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2023) Species factsheet: Coenocorypha aucklandica. Downloaded from http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/auckland-snipe-coenocorypha-aucklandica on 02/06/2023. Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2023) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from http://datazone.birdlife.org on 02/06/2023.