Carlos Eduardo Agne

Revisão e atualização da lista das aves do Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil

The list of birds of the state of Rio Grande do Sul (281,749 sq. km), southern Brazil, is revised and updated. Species were included in the list according to two main criteria: (i) occurrence in the state documented with tangible evidence - study skin or complete specimen, photograph, video or vocal recording - published in the literature or available for independent verification in scientific collections or archives of public access, or (ii) at least one state record supported by non-material evidence allowing an unequivocal diagnosis of the taxon, such as a circumstantiated report, published or provided to the authors, containing a detailed description of or reference to the diagnostic features observed. Species mentioned for the state that do not conform to these criteria were not included in the main list and were regarded as probable or hypothetical, according to the evidence available and the distributional coherence of the existing records. The final list comprises 661 species, of which 649 are documented by physical evidence. Another 10 and 16 species are listed as probable and hypothetical, respectively. Compared with the previous list, 44 species were added and seven were excluded or substituted, resulting in a net increase of 37 species. Fregetta grallaria (Vieillot, 1818), Polytmus guainumbi (Pallas, 1764), Nonnula rubecula (Spix, 1824), Stymphalornis acutirostris Bornschein, Reinert & Teixeira, 1995, Fluvicola albiventer (Spix, 1825), and Xenopsaris albinucha (Burmeister, 1869) are mentioned for the state for the first time. The number of species added since the last review corresponds to an average increase of slightly more than four species per year. By examining the recent additions in retrospect, it is clear that the number of bird species known to occur in Rio Grande do Sul should continue to grow at a similar rate over the next decade or so. In view of this, some guidelines for improving future revisions of the state checklist are proposed. In order to better understand new occurrences of birds over time, the use of adequate criteria to distinguish range extensions from range expansions, and instances of vagrancy from pseudo-vagrancy, is recommended.

New records, distribution and status of six seabird species in Brazil

Distribution records of poorly-known species are currently the most explored theme in the Brazilian seabird literature. If properly evaluated, this kind of information can improve our knowledge on distribution, migration and status of occurrence of these species. In this note we present new records for six species of poorly-known seabirds in the Brazilian coast, reviewing distribution records and defining their status of occurrence in the country. We consider Chionis albus (Gmelin, 1789) a pseudo-vagrant in Brazil and define its status as a scarce seasonal visitor from southern South America. We present the first records of Leucophaeus atricilla (Linnaeus, 1758) for Trindade Island, and of Leucophaeus pipixcan (Wagler, 1831) for the state of Rio Grande do Sul, and determined that the former is a vagrant in eastern Brazil and the latter a vagrant across the country. Anous stolidus (Linnaeus, 1758) is a vagrant in southernmost Brazil. We were unable to determine if records of Chlidonias niger (Linnaeus, 1758) for Brazil and southern South America refer to vagrancy or pseudo-vagrancy. Additionally, we verified the occurrence of breeding individuals of Anous minutus Boie, 1844 on Martin Vaz Island and confirmed that there is no evidence of breeding on neighboring Trindade Island.

New records and a review of the distribution of the Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea Pontoppidan, 1763 (Aves: Sternidae) in Brazil

We report new records of the Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea Pontoppidan, 1763 for the coast of Rio Grande do Sul, southernmost Brazil. Birds were in first alternate plumage, apparently overwintering in the region. A literature and museum review revealed the existence of 21 localities with records of this species in Brazil. Ten specimens were obtained in the country, attributable to eight localities. Records from five other localities were documented with band recoveries or photographs. We were able to clarify information from one of the undocumented records, while the remaining requires further investigation and/or documentation. Our review and new information on migration routes confirm that the Arctic Tern in Brazil is a regular, seasonal visitor from the northern hemisphere. We also suggest that waters off south Brazil may be used by overwintering individuals, especially during the austral winter.

Phylogeny and systematics of Chiroxiphia and Antilophia manakins (Aves, Pipridae)

Chiroxiphia and Antilophia manakins are recognized as closely related genera. Nonetheless, Chiroxiphia has been recovered as paraphyletic in some studies with limited taxonomic coverage. This genus currently comprises five species, although this arrangement is still unsettled. Chiroxiphia pareola is the most widespread species, with four recognized subspecies, but their taxonomic status are also uncertain. Finally, the phylogenetic relationships amongst the majority of Chiroxiphia and Antilophia taxa are unknown. Here, we use multilocus DNA sequences from multiple individuals of all currently accepted species and subspecies of both genera to infer their phylogenetic relationships and its implications on their classification. Our results suggest Chiroxiphia, as currently defined, is a paraphyletic group, since C. boliviana is more closely related to Antilophia than to the remaining Chiroxiphia taxa. Within C. pareola, our results support that C. p. regina and C. p. napensis should be treated as independent species. We found three divergent clades in C. p. pareola likely corresponding to distinct subspecies: one in which the isolated and endemic Tobago Island C. p. atlantica individuals are grouped with C. p. pareola from the north bank of the lower Amazon River; and two sister clades comprising individuals distributed south of the Amazon river, and those from the Atlantic Forest.