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

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	-	-

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2024	Near Threatened	C2a(ii)
2016	Near Threatened	B1b(iii)
2012	Near Threatened	B1ab(iii)
2008	Near Threatened	B1a+b(iii)
2004	Near Threatened
2000	Lower Risk/Near Threatened
1996	Vulnerable
1994	Vulnerable
1988	Lower Risk/Least Concern

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

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident)	37,400 km2	medium
Severely fragmented?	no	-

	Estimate	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
Population size	4000-12000 mature individuals	poor	estimated	2010
Population trend	decreasing	-	inferred	-
Generation length	4.35 years	-	-	-
Number of subpopulations	2-4,2	-	-	-
Percentage of mature individuals in largest subpopulation	90-97%	-	-	-

Population justification: Lambert et al. (1993) estimated a maximum of 10,000 individuals, although this was based on little quantified data. In extensive surveys throughout the range in 2009-2010, Española et al. (2013) recorded densities of 3.5 (1.2-10) and 0.4 (0.1-1.7) individuals/km² in the Cordillera and Sierra Madre mountains respectively. If these mean densities are applied to the extent of suitable habitat (per Jung et al. 2020: c. 4,900 km² in the Cordillera and c. 1,800 km² in the Sierra Madre), and 40-80% occupancy is assumed, then the species' population size is estimated to number 7,100-14,300. Not all of these birds will be mature/breeding, and so a total population size of c.4,000-12,000 mature individuals is accepted here, accounting for uncertainty over the ratio of mature individuals, and trends in the years since the Española et al. (2013) densities were estimated. By far the largest subpopulation is now in the Cordillera, which likely accounts for more than 90% of the global population.

Trend justification: No population data are available from which to precisely derive trends. Nonetheless, it is inferred to be declining chiefly due to habitat loss and degradation, and perhaps very locally trapping for the pet-trade (although Prioniturus racquet-tails are notoriously difficult to keep in captivity); hunting may however be a more serious threat to this species. Over the past three generations (13.2 years: 2011-2024), forest cover loss in this species' geographic and elevational range decreased by c. 3-5% (Global Forest Watch 2024, based on data from Hansen et al. [2013] and methods therein), although this does not account for additive impacts of selective logging and the removal of hollow-bearing trees on which this species depends for nesting. Moreover, it is apparent that where hunting pressure is assumed to be high (e.g. in the Sierra Madre), recorded densities of this species are much lower than might reasonably be expected (Española et al. 2013). While the rate of decline is not known or calculated, it is inferred that in the absence of substantive action to ameliorate existing threats, that this species will continue to decline.

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

Country/Territory	IBA Name
Philippines	Mount Pulag National Park
Philippines	Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park
Philippines	Peñablanca Protected Landscape and Seascape

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Moist Montane	major	resident
Altitude	700 - 2900 m	Occasional altitudinal limits

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
Agriculture & aquaculture	Annual & perennial non-timber crops - Shifting agriculture	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation
Agriculture & aquaculture	Annual & perennial non-timber crops - Small-holder farming	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Biological resource use	Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Intentional use (species is the target)	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Species mortality
Biological resource use	Logging & wood harvesting - Unintentional effects: (subsistence/small scale) [harvest]	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 4
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation

Purpose	Scale
Food - human	subsistence, national
Pets/display animals, horticulture	international

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Montane Racquet-tail Prioniturus montanus. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/montane-racquet-tail-prioniturus-montanus 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.