Data Zone
Justification of Red List category
This elusive species is listed as Critically Endangered as its population is now thought to be very small, and is believed to be undergoing a very rapid continuing decline in extent, area, and habitat quality, owing to the high rate of loss and degradation of its preferred habitat, seasonal marshland. Populations in both Ethiopia and South Africa are now thought to be extremely small (although it is unknown whether there is migration between the two areas).
Population justification
The population in South Africa was previously estimated to be 235 birds, with at least a further 210-215 pairs in Ethiopia (A. Shimelis in litt. 1998), i.e. probably 700 mature individuals in total. The species can only be reliably surveyed in the breeding season in Ethiopia, but surveys risk disturbing nesting and thus have been avoided in the past (Y. D. Adebe in litt. 2013). Nevertheless, the most recent surveys by Colyn et al. (2020a, b) using cameras and acoustic monitoring yielded upper-limit population densities of 1 pair/5.8 ha in Ethiopia, and 1 pair in 6.7 ha in South Africa. This produced population estimates of 55 pairs in Ethiopia, and c.58 pairs in South Africa, producing a global population estimate of c.226 mature individuals, placed here in the band 50-249 mature individuals.
Trend justification
This species's population is inferred to be decreasing very rapidly in line with levels of disturbance, habitat loss and degradation in Ethiopia and South Africa (Atkinson et al. 1996; Taylor and van Perlo 1998; P. B. Taylor in litt. 1999; De Smidt 2003; Taylor and Grundling 2003; M. Drummond in litt. 2005; Y. Adebe, M. Ewnetu, G. Gebreselassie and H. Smit-Robinson in litt. 2013; Colyn et al. 2020a, c). The rate of decline is therefore suspected to fall in the 50-79% band.
The species occurs in Ethiopia (Taylor and van Perlo 1998; Taylor 1998, 1999), and South Africa (ten sites in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga [De Smidt 2003], and it can occur at low, coastal altitudes [Davies et al. 2015]). There are also historical sightings from Zimbabwe (Colyn et al. 2019) (only a very limited number of accepted records from the 1970s and 1980s [Hustler and Irwin 1995; Taylor and van Perlo 1998; Ewbank 2014], and a possible breeding record in the 1950s [Taylor and van Perlo 1998; Taylor 1999]), and there is little to no recent information about the species's status there. Claimed records from Zambia and Rwanda are unproven (Taylor and van Perlo 1998; F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett in litt. 1999; P. Leonard in litt. 1999). In South Africa, the total population was estimated to be 235 birds by Taylor and van Perlo (1998), but the area of occupancy has since been estimated at 3.92 km2 in South Africa (150 ha across the Dullstroom area, 50 ha at Wakkerstroom, the only two recently reliable site) (R. Colyn in litt. 2020), and due to low confidence in past estimates and continued threats to the species and its habitat over the past 10 years, the regional population in South Africa may be fewer than 50 birds (Evans et al. 2015).
In South Africa, a new site was discovered in 2002 in northern coastal KwaZulu-Natal, following speculation that the species no longer occurred in coastal areas, and further sightings at various location in Free State and KwaZulu-Natal have since been made (Taylor and Grundling 2003; Davies et al. 2015). In the Ethiopian highlands, 10-15 pairs bred at Sululta in the late 1990s (Atkinson et al. 1996; Anon. 1997; J. S. Ash in litt. 1999) and c.200 pairs were discovered at a new breeding site (Berga floodplain) in 1997 (Anon. 1997; A. Shimelis in litt. 1998; M. Wondafrash in litt. 2007). In 2005, a small breeding population was discovered at Bilacha in Ethiopia (M. Wondafrash in litt. 2007). Although Weserbi hosted 10-15 pairs in 2003 (Allan et al. 2004), subsequent surveys have failed to record any evidence of presence at this site (Colyn et al. 2020a). A recent study assessing the available habitat for this species across the Sululta area found the majority of remaining wetland sites were not in a suitable state for this species (Colyn et al. 2020a). Berga Wetland hosts the majority of the remaining habitat for this species across the region, with 61% (158 ha) in the upper reaches, and 37% (71 ha) in the lower reaches. Weserbi is currently unsuitable due to over-grazing and mowing, but should this area improve, it could contribute a further 85 ha of breeding habitat (Colyn et al. 2020a). Bilacha Wetland has been completely fragmented and degraded due to agricultural activities, and currently provides only 1 ha of suitable habitat.
Whether a single population migrates between Ethiopia and South Africa, or each country hosts its own subpopulation, is still not certain (Taylor and van Perlo 1998; Barnes 2000), although observations from a breeding site in Ethiopia discovered in 2005 show that birds continue to breed into the dry season and may remain in Ethiopia after breeding, rather than migrate (A. Tefera per Anon. 2006), and genetic analyses possibly suggest the two subpopulations may intermingle (Dalton et al. 2017). Recent research has found birds breeding in both Ethiopia (June-August) and South Africa (October-January) two months apart in the same year (Colyn et al. 2020a, b). Suggestions that the non-breeding grounds for the Ethiopian population could be within south-west Ethiopia have not been substantiated; seven days of intensive surveys in the Kaffa area in April 2013 found no evidence of the species at seven major wetlands (M. Ewnetu in litt. 2013). A recent study of the distribution and available habitat for the species across Africa confirmed that Ethiopia and South Africa hold the majority of suitable habitat, and that there are smaller areas located in Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe (Colyn et al. 2020c).
Behaviour: The movements of this species are not fully understood, but the lack of subspeciation has been interpreted to imply that the birds migrate between the two subpopulations (del Hoyo et al. 1996; Taylor and van Perlo 1998; Dalton et al. 2018), and DNA analyses suggest that the species may be migratory (Smit-Robinson 2014; C. Symes in litt. 2016; Dalton et al. 2018). However the fact that there are overlaps in occurrence has prompted suggestions that strict migration is unlikely (Taylor and van Perlo 1998). One suggestion is that long-distance dispersal occurs when numbers are high (del Hoyo et al. 1996; Taylor and van Perlo 1998), with local movements being predominant at other times. Recent findings further support the presence of two subpopulations (South Africa and Ethiopia) that respond nomadically to niche availability (Colyn et al. 2020a, b, c), and could potentially intermingle at disjunct central sites. In 2012 a survey was carried out in south-west Ethiopia during the non-breeding season to understand more about the possible movement of birds between Ethiopia and South Africa, but no birds were found (Drerup 2015). However, recent developments in the use of remote survey methodology have improved the ability to study this highly elusive species (Colyn et al. 2017, 2019). In Ethiopia birds that breed in the central highlands in June-September may move to lower-level habitats during the non-breeding season when the highland areas becomes unsuitable (del Hoyo et al. 1996; Taylor and van Perlo 1998). Similarly, in South Africa, birds are primarily present in the highland regions in October-March, with isolated low-altitude records outside of this peak period (April-August). This suggests that the species moves nomadically in response to changing niche conditions and could possibly use peat wetlands at lower elevations during the winter. Application of camera-acoustic survey methodology allowed for the successful confirmation of the vocalisations of this species, which is not very audible amongst other wetland and environmental sounds (Colyn et al. 2020b). In South Africa, the species arrived at highland wetlands shortly after the first large (c.50mm) rainfall in early to mid summer, displacing the resident Red-chested Flufftail in selected sedge dominant habitat patches (Colyn et al. 2019). Territorial activity commenced immediately, including visual and vocal displays (Colyn et al. 2019, 2020b). Visual displays include the voluntary display of white secondaries both when wings were tucked in and during extensive wing-flapping behaviour. These visual displays were noted together with peaks in vocalisations, which were conducted from first light through to 3 hours after sunrise (Colyn et al. 2020b), with most of the vocalisations done by males. Females were observed to be more active late-morning through to midday, while juveniles were more active during the late-morning and late-afternoon. Chicks fledge by mid-late summer (Colyn et al. 2020b). Males may leave wetlands soon after the chicks have fledged, while females remained in wetlands later into summer, and juveniles could remain longer, until the end of March (Colyn et al. 2020b).
Habitat: Breeding In Ethiopia the species breeds in high-altitude seasonal marshes (between 2,200 and 2,600 m) with dense, rapidly growing vegetation dominated by sedges, grasses and forbs (Taylor 1996; Taylor and van Perlo 1998). It occurs here when vegetation has reached 20-40 cm in height and the ground has not yet become entirely flooded (Taylor et al. 2004). Very soon after hatching, it appears to move its chicks to areas of denser vegetation where the ground is more deeply and continuously flooded (Taylor et al. 2004). The species may have specific microhabitat requirements that have not yet been established. In South Africa it inhabits moist to flooded peat-based habitats (mostly at 1,100-2,100 m) where vegetation is dense and dominated by sedges (Carex species), although it is occasionally found in pure stands of Typha and reeds (Davies et al. 2015; Colyn et al. 2019). It forages in mud at the edges of reed beds, in shallow water, in floating mats of aquatic vegetation and occasionally on dry ground (Taylor and van Perlo 1998). Of the 10 important sites for the species in South Africa, 9 are within the Eastern Uplands, Great Escarpment Mountains and Highveld peatland ecoregions, emphasising the importance of peat-based habitats (Taylor and Grundling 2003). Occupancy results from South Africa suggest that increased basal and canopy cover, together with shallower water depths, were the primary factors influencing local occurrence (Colyn et al. 2019). Studies from Ethiopia showed that the significant drivers of nest site selection were vegetation cover, sedge cover, vegetation height, and water depth (Colyn et al. 2020a). When cover was reduced, or the water levels increased, birds immediately abandoned respective sites.
Diet: It feeds on seeds and vegetation as well as insects, spiders, earthworms, small frogs and small fish (De Smidt 2003; see Taylor et al. 2018). The stomach contents of a deceased chick included coleoptera (Dystiscidae) imagines, Diptera larvae (Tipulidae and Tabanidae), and the remains of small crustaceans.
Breeding site Nests found in Ethiopia are described as a ball of woven live sedge, Eleocharis or Cyperus, and other plant stems and vegetation, with clutches of 4-6 eggs (Taylor et al. 2004; Allan et al. 2006). Observations at a nest found in August 1999 resulted in an estimated incubation period of 15-16 days.
Seasonal marshes are threatened by drainage (for cultivation and forestry), flooding by dams, catchment erosion, water abstraction, human disturbance, too-frequent burning, and excessive trampling and grazing by livestock and cutting of marsh vegetation for fodder (Atkinson et al. 1996; Taylor and van Perlo 1998; Colyn et al. 2019, 2020a). Observations in Ethiopia suggest that the species moves its chicks very soon after hatching to areas of denser vegetation and deeper flooding before the vegetation at nest sites has grown enough for cutting by local people (Taylor et al. 2004). Grasses and sedges are cut for the culturally important Ethiopian coffee ceremony (De Smidt 2003). In Ethiopia, rapid population growth is resulting in habitat loss and degradation from increasing agricultural practices. Primary threats across the Sululta plain include over-grazing, mowing of wetland vegetation for fodder bale production, and traditional harvesting of vegetation. Currently, more than 90% of all suitable wetland catchments have been completely altered and lost (Colyn et al. 2020a). Bilacha wetland has already been almost completely converted into agriculture, settlement and grazing land. Suitable habitat at Weserbi wetland has been completely lost, and housing is spreading close to the remaining small patch of wet grassland (Colyn et al. 2020a). Even the remaining core site, Berga Wetland, is highly threatened as habitat degradation and destruction continue unchecked despite attempts to improve the conservation status of the area. In addition to the existing overgrazing, trampling and grass cutting, local people are encroaching further down to the wetland, converting grassland for subsistence agriculture and dividing up small plots of land for grazing. Suitable habitat at Berga has already been reduced by more than 90% and is fragmenting further under land-use pressure (Colyn et al. 2020a). The peatlands of South Africa are threatened by cultivation, afforestation, grazing, water abstraction, horticulture, peat fires, draining, headcut and donga erosion, siltation, fences and developments such as roads and dams (Taylor and Grundling 2003; Colyn et al. 2020c). The primary current threat in South Africa is development pressure from the mining industry, agricultural activities, construction of weirs and dams, other sources of flooding, expansion of invasive alien vegetation, and inappropriate management activities such as too-frequent fires and heavy grazing (Colyn et al. 2020c). Genetic analysis suggests that this species may have a low genetic diversity, and so could be limited in its ability to cope with environmental changes (Dalton et al. 2018). Climate change analyses suggest that this species is likely to be very vulnerable to climate change, with large sections of its highland breeding areas potentially contracting by 2050 (Colyn et al. 2020c)
Conservation Actions Underway
CMS Appendix I and II. Some South African sites have some legal protection, and at least four sites are protected by the landowners (Barnes 2000). At the largest Ethiopian breeding population, the vegetation is not cut for fodder until October-November (M. Wondafrash in litt. 2007), thus giving the birds time to breed without disturbance (Anon. 1997). However, recent surveys by Colyn et al. (2020a) suggest that the efficacy of this management intervention is deteriorating under increased population growth and land-use pressure, resulting in increased habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation.One of the Ethiopian sites, Berga, is on a state-run dairy farm, and formerly so was Weserbi. The farm at Weserbi has been privatised, but the marsh still remains under the control of the central Dairy Farm Enterprise based in Addis Ababa (M. Wondafrash in litt. 2007). There is a Site Support Group at Berga, formed by the Ethiopian Wildlife and Natural History Society (De Smidt 2003). Support from organisations including the Middelpunt Wetland Trust helped to build a primary school (which is now named after the species) for the Berga community and the villagers acknowledge the value of the species (Drummond 2013), and a document is in preparation to formalise the Berga community project (H. Smit-Robinson in litt. 2016). In South Africa, the Middelpunt Wetland Trust was formed in 1994 with the main objective of conserving the species and its habitat (De Smidt 2003; M. Drummond in litt. 2005). In 2003, a partnership was formed to mitigate the effects of the Braamhoek (formally changed to Ingula) pumped storage scheme. Ingula has since been proclaimed as a nature reserve, and as such has secured some habitat for the species. Verloren Vallei, Seeikoeivlei and Ntsikeni Vlei are formally protected areas in South Africa, that currently host the majority of highly suitable habitat for the species (Colyn et al. 2020c). In June 2003, a national Species Action Planning stakeholder workshop was held in Wakkerstroom, South Africa, to assess the threats facing the species in this country, and concluded with the agreement that a South African White-winged Flufftail Action Group be established (De Smidt 2003), which was formed by the Department of Environmental Affairs in South Africa in 2016 (H. Smit-Robinson in litt. 2016).
An International Species Action Plan was published in 2008 (Sande et al. 2008). An AEWA Small Grants Fund supported project in Ethiopia ran from July 2012 to September 2014 (Drerup 2015). The project held four awareness-raising workshops, distributed 1,000 copies of a brochure about the species to schools, local government and the local community and produced a billboard poster to increase awareness. The project enabled protection of the species at its breeding site in the Berga wetlands: 3 ha were fenced off and members of the Site Support Group patrolled the area (these activities were to continue post-completion of the project); soil conservation measures were also implemented to reduce erosion (Drerup 2015). BirdLife South Africa have established a long-term survey being conducted annually since 2016 at core sites within Mpumalanga, South Africa. These surveys assess the ecology, demography and population dynamics, with the results having been synthesised into best practice guidelines for habitat management (BirdLife South Africa in litt. 2020). In 2015 the second meeting of the AEWA White-winged Flufftail International Working Group was held in Addis Ababa, with a follow up third meeting taking place in South Africa in 2019. An Implementation Plan was developed to ensure the implementation of actions outlined in the ISSAP. The first confirmed breeding record from the southern hemisphere at Middelpunt Wetland, South Africa has resulted in the abandonment of establishing a captive facility, and the focusing of efforts on the conservation of the species’ habitat (H. Smit-Robinson in litt. 2020).
Conservation Actions Proposed
Secure habitat under formal protection, and promote appropriate management practices that don't deteriorate wetland habitat. Maintain and restore suitable habitat at breeding areas in Ethiopia through sustainable use under community-based conservation programmes, and it has been proposed that the conservation statue of the Berga Wetland be upgraded (Atkinson et al. 1996; Taylor and van Perlo 1998; M. Drummond in litt. 2016). Protect additional sites in South Africa, and a long term goal is also to declare Middelpunt Wetland a nature reserve (Barnes 2000; Evans et al. 2015; H. Smit-Robinson in litt. 2016). Continue surveys in Ethiopia and southern Africa to better define its range, population, seasonal movements and habitat requirements (Atkinson et al. 1996; A. Shimelis in litt. 1998; Barnes 2000). Locate new breeding sites (Taylor et al. 2004; M. Drummond in litt. 2005). Rehabilitate degraded wetlands (Taylor et al. 2004). Conduct research to determine the extent of the species's dependency on mire habitat in South Africa (Taylor and Grundling 2003). Ensure integrity and reduce disturbance at eight sites in South Africa (De Smidt 2003). Confirm whether the species migrates between Ethiopia and South Africa (De Smidt 2003).
14 cm. Tiny rail. Adult male has chestnut head. Both sexes have black-barred chestnut tail and white wing-patches (very obvious in flight, not visible at rest). Similar spp. No other flufftail Sarothrura has white wing-patches. Female paler below than other female flufftails Voice Was believed to make a soft, double-noted hooting, but it has been proposed that these calls may in fact refer to nocturnal calls of Grey Crowned Crane Balearica regulorum. Instead wing-flapping has been suggested to be a possible method of communication (M. Anderson in litt. 2018) Hints Best chance of seeing this secretive bird is during the wet season in upland marshes in central South Africa and Ethiopia.
Text account compilers
Clark, J.
Contributors
Abebe, Y., Allan, D., Anderson, M.D., Anderson, T., Ash, J.S., Ashpole, J, Benstead, P., Colyn, R., Dowsett, R.J., Dowsett-Lemaire, F., Drummond, M., Ekstrom, J., Evans, M., Ewbank, D., Ewnetu, M., Gebreselassie, G., Gerrans, C., Kariuki Ndang’ang’a, P., Lawlor, R.J., Leonard, P., Madden, S., Nel, O., Pilgrim, J., Pretorius, R., Robertson, P., Shimelis, A., Shutes, S., Smit-Robinson, H., Symes, A., Symes, C., Tarboton, W., Taylor, P.B., Taylor, J., Westrip, J.R.S. & Wondafrash, M.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: White-winged Flufftail Sarothrura ayresi. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/white-winged-flufftail-sarothrura-ayresi on 26/12/2024.
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 26/12/2024.