Data Zone
Justification of Red List category
This species has a wide range throughout South-East Asia and, more locally, in South Asia. In response to a range of threats, not all of which are fully understood, it is suspected of having declined by 20-29% over the past ten years, a rate which approaches the thresholds for listing as threatened; accordingly, the species is listed as Near Threatened. The mechanisms behind these declines are enigmatic, but undoubtedly include habitat loss and degradation (driven by localised small-holder farming as well as industrial-scale plantations), and perhaps collisions with urban structures when migrating as well as other factors associated with migration that we are yet to elucidate. In the absence of evidence these threats are slowing in extent and intensity, the same rates of declines are suspected to occur in the next 10 years, but there is an urgent need for consistent monitoring and research to better unravel the causes of decline in this species.
Population justification
The global population has never been formally estimated but throughout its range descriptions of its abundance range from rare to locally common (Limparungpatthanakij and Hansasuta 2022). eBird (2023) data suggest that in South-East Asia it is rather thinly distributed (even accounting for inconsistent observer effort), although in some places this may be a reflection of recent declines rather than a natural scarcity.
Trend justification
The population is inferred to be declining in response to habitat loss and other threats (including collisions structures on migration) which have caused a decrease in population size over the past ten years.
In the last 10 years (2013-2023), forest cover in this species' breeding/resident ranges declined by c.15% (Global Forest Watch 2023, based on data from Hansen et al. [2013] and methods disclosed therein). This figure does not account for degradation, although C. erithaca is evidently capable of persisting in (sometimes highly) degraded habitats, but most losses in the 15% described amount to total clearance for agriculture, which will have a direct impact on this species. This species is apparently declining at a rate that exceeds forest cover loss alone, with reports of it having disappeared from sites it once formerly occupied (J. Eaton pers. comm. 2023). The mechanisms behind these additive declines, and the rate at which they're occurring, are poorly known. The species is among the most frequently reported species to collide with windows in Singapore (Low et al. 2017) and has been recorded colliding with structures nearly throughout its range (Ali and Ripley 1983, Wells 1999, Round 2008) although the contribution of this threat to suspected declines remains very poorly known. There may also be factors associated with migration that are impacting this species in ways that are not yet known. In particular, potential wintering strongholds of low-lying forest in Peninsular Malaysia and Sumatra may have been converted to palm oil plantations, which this species does not appear able to tolerate. Nonetheless, this is highly speculative, and it is ultimately unknown what percentage of C. erithaca migrate this far south. Precautionarily, over the past ten years, it is suspected of having declined by 10-29%, with a best estimate at the midpoint, of 15-25%. These suspected rates require empirical confirmation but in the absence of clear amelioration of these threats going forward, are precautionarily suspected to occur in the future.
This species has two somewhat widely disjunct populations. In the west, in India and Sri Lanka, there is a resident population, with birds in northern west India apparently retreating south during the winter (see Mistri et al. 2017). There is also a resident population in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and through much of South-East Asia, including Bangladesh, north-east India, Myanmar, Thailand, Lao PDR, Viet Nam, Hainan and Yunnan (China) and Cambodia. Many of these birds migrate south, then occurring in Peninsular Malaysia and Sumatra (Indonesia), where overlaps with resident C. rufidorsa. In the north of its range, some birds breed in the Himalayan foothills including, very narrowly, in Bhutan.
In all seasons the species favours pools, creeks and streams in primary and mature secondary broadleaf evergreen forests (Limparungpatthanakij and Hansasuta 2022). On migration it is somewhat more adaptable, and then can occur in heavily degraded forests. Similarly, in non-breeding season it is evidently more catholic in habitat use than when breeding, and sometimes winters in wooded parks in urban areas.
The threats driving declines in this species are somewhat enigmatic, at least in the extent to which each is driving declines. First, habitat loss and degradation are undoubtedly contributing to declines. In the past ten years, forest cover loss has been the equivalent of c.15% (Hansen et al. 2013, Global Forest Watch 2023) and this is believed to be causing parallel declines in population size. The causes of these losses vary geographically. In South Asia and much of South-East Asia, losses have largely been driven by smallholder farming and agricultural expansion. In the wintering grounds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula and Sumatra, however, forest losses have largely been driven by industrial-sized plantations (particularly oil palm and rubber); to some extent, this has also locally occurred in South-East Asia. There is evidence that declines in this species exceed the gross rate of forest loss, although the exact drivers of this are not well understood.
Collusion with windows on migration (Ali and Ripley 1983, Wells 1999, Round 2008, Low et al. 2017) may be a more acute threat than is currently realised, and there could be threat factors associated with migration (particularly the lack of suitable, connected habitat on passage) that are so far enigmatic. Notably, the fastest declining kingfisher species in South-East Asia, Black-capped Kingfisher Halcyon pileata, is also migratory (albeit with exceedingly different habitat needs and use).
Conservation Actions Underway
No specific measures are known for this species, but it occurs in numerous protected areas throughout its range. Protected in India, Malaysia and Thailand (see Limparungpatthanakij and Hansasuta 2022).
Conservation Actions Needed
The most important conservation action needed for this species is a better understanding of the threats driving its declines. In particular, the acuteness of the threat posed by buildings, and any other threat factors associated with migration, need investigation. Similarly, there is a need for monitoring at select sites (preferably a combination of strongholds and marginal sites) to help monitor population trends, since this species is currently suspected at declining at a rate faster than forest cover loss alone. Nonetheless, habitat trends should continue to be monitored using remote sensing data. Remaining lowland sites in the Greater Sundas merit immediate protection from further logging. Since this species can tolerate mature regenerated forest, schemes that protect degraded forests and aim to restore ecological function also provide an avenue for population recovery.
Text account compilers
Berryman, A.
Contributors
Butchart, S., Eaton, J., Ekstrom, J. & Harding, M.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Black-backed Dwarf-kingfisher Ceyx erithaca. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/black-backed-dwarf-kingfisher-ceyx-erithaca 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.