LC
Snowy Sheathbill Chionis albus



Taxonomy

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.
SACC. 2005 and updates. A classification of the bird species of South America. Available at: #http://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm#.

IUCN Red list criteria met and history
Red List criteria met
Critically Endangered Endangered Vulnerable
- - -

Red List history
Year Category Criteria
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
Species attributes

Migratory status full migrant Forest dependency Does not normally occur in forest
Land mass type Average mass -
Distribution

Estimate Data quality
Extent of Occurrence breeding/resident (km2) 594,000 medium
Extent of Occurrence non-breeding (km2) 1,900,000 medium
Number of locations -
Severely Fragmented -
Population and trend
Value Data quality Derivation Year of estimate
No. of mature individuals poor estimated 2009
Population trend Stable suspected -
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) 10.5 - - -

Trend justification: The population is suspected to be stable, however, there is some evidence of a population decline in the vicinity of the Argentine Islands since 1988 (E. Woehler in litt. 2003).


Country/territory distribution
Country/Territory Occurrence status Presence Resident Breeding Non-breeding Passage
Antarctica N Extant Yes
Argentina N Extant
Brazil V Extant
Chile N Extant
Falkland Islands (Malvinas) N Extant
South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands N Extant Yes
St Helena (to UK) V Extant
Uruguay V Extant Yes

Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA)
Country/Territory IBA Name
South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands South Georgia - mainland, islands, islets and stacks
Antarctica Harmony Point, Nelson Island

Habitats & altitude
Habitat (level 1) Habitat (level 2) Importance Occurrence
Marine Intertidal Rocky Shoreline major breeding
Marine Intertidal Rocky Shoreline major non-breeding
Marine Intertidal Sandy Shoreline and/or Beaches, Sand Bars, Spits, Etc major breeding
Marine Intertidal Sandy Shoreline and/or Beaches, Sand Bars, Spits, Etc major non-breeding
Marine Intertidal Shingle and/or Pebble Shoreline and/or Beaches major breeding
Marine Intertidal Shingle and/or Pebble Shoreline and/or Beaches major non-breeding
Marine Intertidal Tidepools major breeding
Marine Intertidal Tidepools major non-breeding
Altitude   Occasional altitudinal limits  

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2023) Species factsheet: Chionis albus. 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.