Justification of Red List category
This species has an extremely 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 thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size may be moderately small to large, 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 total population size is thought to be large, numbering 10,000 to 100,000 individuals, which is roughly equivalent to 6,700-67,000 mature individuals.
Trend justification
The population is suspected to be in decline owing to ongoing habitat destruction and unsustainable levels of hunting. Tree cover loss within the range is currently estimated at 8% across three generations (Global Forest Watch 2021, using Hansen et al. [2013] data and methods disclosed therein). Assuming that population declines are roughly equivalent to the rate of forest loss, the species may be declining at <10% over three generations (17.1 years), however the species is only found in primary forest and very mature secondary forest, so population declines may be faster than tree cover loss alone.
The species occurs across central Africa, including Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon.
Text account compilers
Rotton, H.
Contributors
Butchart, S. & Ekstrom, J.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Plumed Guineafowl Guttera plumifera. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/plumed-guineafowl-guttera-plumifera on 22/11/2024.
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 22/11/2024.