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Site description (2006 baseline):
Site location and context
The site occupies 427 ha of tall dry forest on karstic limestone, of which 82 ha is protected as the Parrot Reserve, owned by the National Trust. The forest is highly diverse with
Cedrela odorata (the majority are mature or dead trees, main parrot nesting habitat),
Sideroxylon salicifolium, Exothea paniculata, Chionanthus caymanensis and
Bursera simaruba as dominants. There has been a long history of disturbance by logging and the forest is a mosaic of primary and second growth trees with, on the south of the bluff,
Pilosocereus sp., Agave sobolifera, Tillandsia sp. and orchids.
These include 60-70 pairs of the Near-threatened Cuban Parrot
hesterna. It is estimated that 29-42 nests per year may be necessary to sustain the population - a concern since all active parrot nests located in surveys (1999-2003) were in dead or dying
Cedrela odorata cavities in the
Bursera-Exothea- Chionanthus community, and while cedars were common there was no recruitment of seedlings or young trees. Since 1999, a total of 18 active nests have been located, together with other pairs holding territories but not nesting. Also, about 9% of the global population of the Near-threatened restricted-range Vitelline Warbler
crawfordi. The restrictedrange Thick-billed Vireo alleni is common and the biome species Loggerhead Kingbird
caymanensis is uncommon.A total of 19 taxa breed, three additional species with endemic races: Red-legged Thrush
Turdus plumbeus coryi confined to Cayman Brac), Caribbean Elaenia
caymanensis and Bananaquit
sharpei. Indigenous species are the Whitecrowned Pigeon, Zenaida Dove, White-winged Dove, Common Ground-dove, Mangrove Cuckoo, Smooth-billed Ani, Barn Owl, Northern Mockingbird and Yellow-faced Grassquit
Tiaris olivaceus; summer breeding migrants are the Grey Kingbird, Antillean Nighthawk and Blackwhiskered Vireo.Regular migrant landbirds include Yellow-bellied sapsucker, Grey Catbird, White-eyed Vireo, Yellow-throated Vireo, and 28 species of warbler, most commonly Northern Parula, Cape May Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Yellow-throated Warbler, Palm Warbler, Prairie Warbler, Black-and-white Warbler, American Redstart and Ovenbird.
Non-bird biodiversity: Plants endemic to the Cayman Islands: Allophylus cominia var. caymanensis; Crossopetalum caymanense and Cocothrinax proctorii. Endemic plants to Little Cayman and Cayman Brac: Chionanthus caymanensis var. caymanensis, Encyclia kingsii, Phyllanthus caymanensis and Myremecophila thompsoniana var. minor. Verbesina caymanensis endemic to Cayman Brac occurs on the north-eastern bluff. It is a priority site for cacti in a regional context Pilosocereus sp. Bats, Caribbean endemics: Macrotus waterhousii minor and Erophylla sezekorni syops. Amphibians: Osateophilus septentrionalis and Eleutherodactylus p. planirostris. Reptiles endemic to Little Cayman and Cayman Brac: Alsophis cantherigerus fuscicauda, Anolis sagrei luteosignifer, Aristelliger p. praesignis, Cyclura nubila caymanensis, Celestus crusculusmaculates and Sphaerodactylus argivus argivus. Lepidoptera endemic to the Cayman Islands: Cyclargus ammon erembis and Memphis echemus danielana.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
The major threat is insufficient protected breeding habitat to sustain the parrots and the failure to include any protected areas of forest in the proposed Sustainable Plan for Cayman Brac. For the parrot to survive, even in the short term, Wiley et al (2004) consider it imperative that additional forest habitat is conserved as clearing and fragmentation of unprotected forest is resulting in the continuous loss of nest sites. Additional concerns are human disturbance; predation by escalating populations of rats and feral cats, illegal capture of parrots as pets, the importation of the Grand Cayman race and the importation of exotic parrots. Disturbance to endemic landbirds caused by hunters shooting unprotected white-crowned pigeons on the bluff during the summer breeding season is another threat.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Bluff Forest (Cayman Islands (to UK)). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/bluff-forest-iba-cayman-islands-(to-uk) on 23/12/2024.
