Current view: Data table and detailed info
Taxonomic note
Pyrocephalus rubinus, P. nanus and P. dubius (del Hoyo and Collar 2016) were previously lumped as P. rubinus following AOU (1998 & supplements), SACC (2005 & updates), Sibley & Monroe (1990, 1993) and Stotz et al. (1996).
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.
IUCN Red List criteria met and history
Red List criteria met
Red List history
| Migratory status |
not a migrant |
Forest dependency |
low |
| Land-mass type |
|
Average mass |
14 g |
Population justification: Distance sampling during 2015-2022 produced the following population estimates (all data from CDRS Landbird Project 2023, unpublished data): On Pinzón, the species is common with c. 2,800 pairs (2,000-3,900 pairs). Likewise, it is common on Pinta with 3,060 pairs (2,100-4,500 pairs). On Rabida, the species is fairly common with 220 pairs (130-350 pairs). The population on Marchena is restricted to several patches of dry forest, numbering 500 pairs (30-940 pairs). The population on Fernandina numbers at most 2,500 pairs, though likely less. Isabela holds a population of 15,000 pairs (11,500-20,500 pairs) on Alcedo volcano, of 1,400 pairs (900-2,300 pairs) on Wolf volcano, and of 850 pairs (550-1,500 pairs) on Darwin volcano; the population on Sierra Negra volcano has declined rapidly to 50-200 pairs, while the population on Cerro Azul volcano is likely extinct. The population on Santiago was likely always small; based on the availability of suitable habitat there may be a population of up to 100 pairs left. On Santa Cruz, the species may have numbered several thousand individuals until the 1960s, but a drastic decline left only c. 30 mature individuals in 2023. Once common on Floreana, it now may no longer persist there. It is also presumably extinct on Santa Fé.
Based on this information, the total population is estimated at c. 26,000 pairs (range 18,000-36,000) (CDRS Landbird Project 2023). This equates to 52,000 mature individuals (range 36,000-72,000 mature individuals).
Trend justification: The species is undergoing a decline, which has likely already led to local extinctions on Floreana and Santa Fé and parts of Isabela, and to a very small population size on Santa Cruz (Wiedenfeld 2006, Merlen 2013, Carmi et al. 2016).
On Isabela, rapid declines were detected on Sierra Negra volcano, at a rate of about 80% over ten years (CDRS Landbird Project 2023). Based on this rate of decline, the current population of 50-200 pairs may have numbered c. 240-1,000 pairs in 2013. The species appears to remain common at Alcedo, Darwin and Wolf volcanoes (CDRS Landbird Project 2023), with probably only slow declines or even stable populations. Therefore, under the very precautionary assumption that the population is declining slowly or moderately rapidly at Alcedo, Darwin and Wolf, the overall population declines on the island are suspected at 20-29% over ten years, though declines could likely be slower.
The original population on Santa Cruz may have been several thousands, with declines from the 1960s onward to c. 30 mature individuals in 2023 (CDRS Landbird Project 2023). Assuming that the population numbered c.20,000 mature individuals in 1960 and has been undergoing an exponential decline since then, past declines amount to 65% over ten years, here precautionarily placed in the band 50-79% over ten years. Once commonly recorded on Floreana, the species was sighted until 2007, with the last confirmed record in 2015 (Dvorak et al. 2017, 2021). While it cannot be ruled out that the species still persists on this island (Dvorak et al. 2021), local declines are precautionarily placed in the band 90-99% over the past ten years, with the population now likely stabilising at extremely low numbers. The most recent observational records from Santa Fé date to 2005 (eBird 2023) and the species may now be extinct there. Consequently, the population trend over the past ten years is not assessed.
There are no trend data from other occupied islands, but based on the species' sensitivity to Philornis downsi (e.g., Mosquera et al. 2022) it cannot be ruled out that the populations are undergoing slow declines. Consequently, assuming extremely rapid declines (90-99% over ten years) on Floreana, very rapid declines (50-79% over ten years) on Santa Cruz, moderately rapid declines (20-29% over ten years) on Isabela, and slow declines (1-19% over ten years) on all other islands, the overall population may be declining roughly at a rate of 21% over ten years. To account for uncertainty, this is here placed in the band 20-29% over ten years (see also Freile et al. 2019).
Country/territory distribution
Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA)
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Little Vermilion Flycatcher Pyrocephalus nanus. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/little-vermilion-flycatcher-pyrocephalus-nanus on 25/11/2024.
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 25/11/2024.
