Data Zone
Taxonomic source(s)
AERC TAC. 2003. AERC TAC Checklist of bird taxa occurring in Western Palearctic region, 15th Draft. Available at: #http://www.aerc.eu/DOCS/Bird_taxa_of _the_WP15.xls#.
Cramp, S. and Simmons, K.E.L. (eds). 1977-1994. Handbook of the birds of Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The birds of the western Palearctic. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
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.
SACC. 2005 and updates. A classification of the bird species of South America. Available at: #http://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm#.
| Critically Endangered | Endangered | Vulnerable |
|---|---|---|
| - | - | - |
| Year | Category | Criteria |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Least Concern | |
| 2016 | Least Concern | |
| 2012 | Least Concern | |
| 2009 | Least Concern | |
| 2008 | Least Concern | |
| 2004 | Least Concern | |
| 2000 | Lower Risk/Least Concern | |
| 1994 | Lower Risk/Least Concern | |
| 1988 | Lower Risk/Least Concern |
| Migratory status | full migrant | Forest dependency | Low |
| Land mass type | Average mass | - |
| Estimate | Data quality | |
|---|---|---|
| Extent of Occurrence breeding/resident (km2) | 25,400,000 | medium |
| Extent of Occurrence non-breeding (km2) | 44,600,000 | medium |
| Number of locations | - | |
| Severely Fragmented | - |
| Value | Data quality | Derivation | Year of estimate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. of mature individuals | 1800000 | poor | estimated | 2022 |
| 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) | 3.65 | - | - | - |
Population justification: The global population is estimated to number 1.8 million mature individuals (Partners in Flight 2022).
Trend justification: The species has been undergoing a moderate decline at an average of 1.41% per year between 1970 and 2017 (Rosenberg et al. 2019, Partners in Flight 2022). Short-term trends however suggest that the population may have been stable over the past three generations (11 years; Pardieck et al. 2018, Meehan et al. 2020).
| Country/Territory | Occurrence status | Presence | Resident | Breeding | Non-breeding | Passage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anguilla (to UK) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Antigua and Barbuda | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Aruba (to Netherlands) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Bahamas | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Barbados | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Belize | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Bermuda (to UK) | V | Extant | ||||
| Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba (to Netherlands) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Canada | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | ||
| Cayman Islands (to UK) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Colombia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Costa Rica | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Cuba | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Curaçao (to Netherlands) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Dominica | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Dominican Republic | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Ecuador | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| El Salvador | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Greenland (to Denmark) | V | Extant | ||||
| Grenada | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Guadeloupe (to France) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Guatemala | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Guyana | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Haiti | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Honduras | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Jamaica | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Martinique (to France) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Mexico | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Montserrat (to UK) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Netherlands | V | Extant | ||||
| Nicaragua | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Panama | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Portugal | V | Extant | ||||
| Puerto Rico (to USA) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Sint Maarten (to Netherlands) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| St Barthelemy (to France) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| St Kitts and Nevis | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| St Lucia | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| St Martin (to France) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| St Pierre and Miquelon (to France) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| St Vincent and the Grenadines | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Trinidad and Tobago | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Turks and Caicos Islands (to UK) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| United Kingdom | V | Extant | ||||
| United States Minor Outlying Islands (to USA) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| USA | N | Extant | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Venezuela | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Virgin Islands (to UK) | N | Extant | Yes | |||
| Virgin Islands (to USA) | N | Extant | Yes |
| Country/Territory | IBA Name |
|---|---|
| Jamaica | Yallahs |
| Bahamas | Harrold and Wilson Ponds National Park |
| Bahamas | Great Inagua |
| Bahamas | Grog Pond |
| St Vincent and the Grenadines | Ashton Wetland |
| Bahamas | Booby Rocks and Pirates Bay |
| Bahamas | South Beach Tidal Flats |
| Bahamas | Nine Tasks Blue Hole |
| Bahamas | Stafford Creek to Andros Town |
| Bahamas | Mangrove Cay |
| Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba (to Netherlands) | Klein Bonaire, Bonaire |
| Antigua and Barbuda | McKinnons Salt Pond |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Valley Church Bay |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Wallings Forest |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Bethesda Dam |
| St Lucia | Point Sables |
| Virgin Islands (to USA) | Great Pond |
| Virgin Islands (to USA) | Southgate and Green Cay |
| Anguilla (to UK) | Long Salt Pond |
| Virgin Islands (to USA) | John Brewer's Bay |
| St Kitts and Nevis | Ponds of the Southeast Peninsula |
| Habitat (level 1) | Habitat (level 2) | Importance | Occurrence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Rural Gardens | suitable | non-breeding |
| Artificial/Terrestrial | Rural Gardens | suitable | breeding |
| Forest | Subtropical/Tropical Mangrove Vegetation Above High Tide Level | suitable | non-breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Fens, Peatlands | suitable | non-breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Fens, Peatlands | suitable | breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) | major | non-breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha) | major | breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha) | suitable | non-breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha) | suitable | breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls) | major | non-breeding |
| Wetlands (inland) | Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls) | major | breeding |
| Altitude | 0 - 2500 m | Occasional altitudinal limits |
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2023) Species factsheet: Megaceryle alcyon. Downloaded from
http://www.birdlife.org on 21/03/2023.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2023) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
http://www.birdlife.org on 21/03/2023.
