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

Taxonomic note

Zoothera dauma (Sibley and Monroe [1990, 1993]) and Z. imbricata (Collar [2004]) have been lumped together into Z. dauma and subsequently split into Z. dauma, Z. major and Z. aurea following del Hoyo and Collar (2016).

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A., Fishpool, L.D.C., Boesman, P. and Kirwan, G.M. 2016. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 2: Passerines. Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	-	-

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2024	Least Concern
2016	Near Threatened	D2
2012	Not Recognised
2008	Not Recognised
2006	Not Recognised
2004	Critically Endangered
2000	Critically Endangered
1994	Critically Endangered
1988	Threatened

Migratory status	not a migrant	Forest dependency	high
Land-mass type		Average mass	-

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident)	1,100 km2	good
Severely fragmented?	no	-

	Estimate	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
Population size	2000-6000, 4000-6000 mature individuals	medium	estimated	2013
Population trend	stable	poor	suspected	-
Generation length	3.53 years	-	-	-
Number of subpopulations	1	-	-	-
Percentage of mature individuals in largest subpopulation	100%	-	-	-

Population justification: The number of mature individuals (singing males x 2) was estimated at 1,890 (95% CI; 1,654–2,210) in 2010, and increased to 5,024 (4,346-5,794) in 2013 (Mizuta et al. 2016). These data found relatively little change in abundance between 2007 and 2012, followed by a sudden increase in 2013, which went unexplained. It is therefore not clear whether the number counted in 2013 was artificially high, and the population size estimated in 2007-2012 remains a better reflection of the contemporary population size. Since 2013, it is possible that the population size has slightly increased, but is perhaps more likely that by 2013 the population was approaching its carrying capacity given the available area of habitat, and the fact that the threats by then had been considerably mitigated. To account for these uncertainties, the number of mature individuals is estimated at 2,000-6,000, with a best estimate at the upper half of this (i.e. 4,000-6,000).

Trend justification: The population trend is likely either stable or increasing. Based on a 1996 estimate the population size was reported as 58 mature individuals (Amami Ornithologists’ Club [AOC] 1997). Since the early 2000s, the population has been increasing in response to slowed forest loss and degradation and the mongoose eradication project, with 50–100 breeding pairs estimated in the early 2000s (MOE 2002). The number of birds (singing males x 2) quickly increased to an estimated 1,890 (95% CI; 1,654–2,210) in 2010, and further to 5,024 (4,346-5,794) in 2013 (Mizuta et al. 2016). The population size is now estimated to be 2,000-6,000, to reflect probably a now stable population at or close to carrying capacity.

Country/Territory	Presence	Origin	Resident	Breeding visitor	Non-breeding visitor	Passage migrant
Japan	extant	native	yes

Country/Territory	IBA Name
Japan	Amami islands

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Moist Lowland	major	resident
Altitude	0 - 400 m	Occasional altitudinal limits

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
Biological resource use	Logging & wood harvesting - Unintentional effects: (subsistence/small scale) [harvest]	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Past, Unlikely to Return		Majority (50-90%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Past Impact
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Invasive and other problematic species, genes & diseases	Invasive non-native/alien species/diseases - Urva auropunctata	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		No decline		Low Impact: 4
		Stresses Reduced reproductive success, Species mortality

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Amami Thrush Zoothera major. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/amami-thrush-zoothera-major on 22/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 22/12/2024.