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

Taxonomic note

Cinclus schulzii (del Hoyo and Collar 2016) was previously listed as C. schulzi.

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.
SACC. 2005 and updates. A classification of the bird species of South America. Available at: https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	-	C2a(i)

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2024	Vulnerable	C2a(i)
2016	Vulnerable	C2a(i)
2012	Vulnerable	C2a(i)
2008	Vulnerable	C2a(i)
2004	Vulnerable
2000	Vulnerable
1996	Vulnerable
1994	Vulnerable
1988	Threatened

Migratory status	altitudinal migrant	Forest dependency	medium
Land-mass type	continent	Average mass	38 g

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident)	73,600 km2	medium
Severely fragmented?	no	-

	Estimate	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
Population size	2000-3300 mature individuals	medium	estimated	2020
Population trend	decreasing	poor	inferred	-
Generation length	2.58 years	-	-	-
Number of subpopulations	4-5	-	-	-
Percentage of mature individuals in largest subpopulation	1-89%	-	-	-

Population justification: Density estimates range from 0.87 to 1.78 individuals per km of river surveyed in Argentina, and from 0.60 to 1.22 individuals per km of river surveyed in Bolivia (Sardina Aragón et al. 2022 and references therein). Densities during the breeding season were found to be generally higher, likely in relation to the carrying capacity of river stretches (Sardina Aragón et al. 2022).
Based on a model of potentially suitable habitat and an average density of 0.94 individuals per km, derived from a 3-year survey of 44 rivers in the country, the population in Argentina was estimated at around 2,700-4,400 individuals (Politi et al. 2020, N. Politi in litt. 2020). Bolivia covers roughly one-sixth of the global range. Given that densities observed in Bolivia were slightly lower than those in Argentina, the global population is preliminarily estimated at 3,000-5,000 individuals. This roughly equates to 2,000-3,300 mature individuals.

Trend justification: There are no new data on population size or trend, but current threats to occupied habitats suggest that slow or moderate, continuing declines are likely.
The species has specialised habitat requirements and only occurs along unpolluted, oxygen-rich, fast-running streams; it is negatively impacted by disturbance and pollution or by clearance of vegetation on the river bank (Tyler and Tyler 1996, Ormerod and Tyler 2020, Politi et al. 2020). In Argentina, only 5% of its habitat is formally protected (Politi et al. 2020). Riparian forests and wetlands in the species' range are under pressure from conversion for agriculture (Gonzalez Baffa-Trasci et al. 2020, Gomez et al. 2021), while rivers in or in close proximity to the range are suffering from pollution by industrial effluents and heavy metals through mining discharge (Mesón Gana et al. 2008, Kirschbaum et al. 2012, Alvizuri-Tintaya et al. 2022). From this, it is inferred that the species is undergoing a continuing decline. Given that many rivers in the range remain inaccessible and undisturbed (Politi et al. 2020), any declines are likely slow.

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

Country/Territory	IBA Name
Argentina	Alto Calilegua
Argentina	Cerro Negro de San Antonio
Argentina	Cuesta de las Higuerillas
Argentina	Cuesta del Clavillo
Argentina	Cuesta del Obispo
Argentina	Cuesta del Totoral
Argentina	Fincas Santiago y San Andrés
Argentina	Pampichuela
Argentina	Parque Nacional Baritú
Argentina	Parque Nacional Calilegua
Argentina	Parque Nacional Campo de los Alisos
Argentina	Parque Provincial La Florida
Argentina	Parque Provincial Laguna Pintascayoc
Argentina	Parque Provincial Los Ñuñorcos y Reserva Natural Quebrada del Portugués
Argentina	Quebrada del Toro
Argentina	Reserva Provincial Santa Ana
Argentina	Río Los Sosa
Argentina	San Francisco-Río Jordan
Argentina	Santa Victoria, Cañani y Cayotal
Argentina	Sierra de Santa Victoria
Argentina	Tiraxi y Las Capillas
Argentina	Valle Colorado y Valle Grande
Argentina	Yala
Bolivia	Reserva Biológica Cordillera de Sama
Bolivia	Reserva Nacional de Flora y Fauna Tariquía

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Forest	Subtropical/Tropical Moist Montane	major	resident
Wetlands (inland)	Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls)	major	resident
Altitude	1500 - 2500 m	Occasional altitudinal limits	(min) 800 m

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
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
Energy production & mining	Renewable energy	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 4
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Natural system modifications	Dams & water management/use - Small dams	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Natural system modifications	Other ecosystem modifications	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation, Ecosystem conversion
Pollution	Agricultural & forestry effluents - Nutrient loads	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation
Pollution	Industrial & military effluents - Type Unknown/Unrecorded	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Slow, Significant Declines		Low Impact: 5
		Stresses Ecosystem degradation

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Rufous-throated Dipper Cinclus schulzii. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/rufous-throated-dipper-cinclus-schulzii 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.