Justification of Red List category
This species has a very large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). Despite the fact that the population trend appears to be decreasing, the decline is not believed to be sufficiently rapid to approach the threshold for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years of three generations). The population size has not been quantified, but it is not believed to approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.
Population justification
The global population size has not been quantified, but this species is described as 'fairly common' (Stotz et al. 1996).
Trend justification
The species is tentatively assessed as being in decline due to habitat loss per Tracewski et al. (2016).
This species occurs in Colombia on both slopes of the West (south to Cauca), Central (head of the Magdalena valley in Huila and east slope in Putumayo and Nariño) and East (south to Cundinamarca and west Caquetá) Andes; through Ecuador to northernmost Peru on the east slope of the Andes; and in north-west Venezuela (Trujillo and Táchira) (Hilty and Brown 1986, Fjeldså and Krabbe 1990).
The species is relatively common in montane evergreen forest and forest edge at 1,600-3,200 m, and to 1,200 m on the Pacific slope and east slope of the East Andes (Hilty and Brown 1986, Stotz et al. 1996).
The species is becoming increasingly local owing to habitat destruction (Stotz et al. 1996). Unplanned colonisation following the completion of roads and massive logging concessions have cleared or degraded many of its Chocó forests, and deforestation is accelerating (Fjeldså and Krabbe 1990, Stattersfield et al. 1998); a long history of human colonisation on inter-Andean slopes has left only remnant forest patches, pasture and plantations (Wege and Long 1995); and extensive degradation in the East Andes has largely cleared west slopes for intensive crop cultivation and pasture (Stattersfield et al. 1998).
Text account compilers
Ekstrom, J., Hermes, C., Butchart, S., Palmer-Newton, A., Harding, M.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Black-billed Mountain-toucan Andigena nigrirostris. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/black-billed-mountain-toucan-andigena-nigrirostris on 23/12/2024.
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 23/12/2024.