Giovanni Nachtigall Maurício

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.

Review of the breeding status of birds in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Information on the breeding biology of birds is essential for improving avian life-history theory and implementing sound management and conservation actions for these organisms. Comprehensive reviews of this kind of information are lacking for most Neotropical regions, including Rio Grande do Sul, the southernmost Brazilian state. Aiming to update the knowledge on the reproductive status of birds in Rio Grande do Sul, we reviewed breeding records of all potential breeding species recorded in the state using a set of predefined, restrictive criteria for accepting breeding evidences as effective. Data satisfying our criteria were available for 165 species in the literature. We also collected novel breeding information obtained in the state for an additional 126 species, including observations for several species whose reproductive biology is poorly known. Among these are birds previously unknown to breed in Brazil. This new data and the critical review of the previous information resulted in a total of 291 species for which breeding evidences are accepted as effective. This corresponds to 54.7% of the 532 species considered either confirmed or potential breeders in the state. In addition to providing information on nesting dates, clutch size, nest architecture and breeding behavior of south Brazilian birds, our review serves as a benchmark for the adequate assessment of avian breeding records elsewhere. We hope to stimulate observers to rigorously document breeding events, especially for taxa for which basic information is lacking.

Taxonomy of “Mouse-colored Tapaculos” (II): An endangered new species from the montane Atlantic Forest of southern Bahia, Brazil (Passeriformes: Rhinocryptidae: Scytalopus)

ABSTRACT An isolated population of tapaculos attributed to Scytalopus speluncae has been known from the mountains of southeastern Bahia state, Brazil, since the early 1990s, and a second isolated population was discovered in 1999. Morphological and bioacoustic analyses of 11 specimens and several tape recordings indicated that these populations represent a new species, in agreement with a previous molecular phylogenetic study. This species is unambiguously distinguished from its closest relatives by 4 suites of characters: (1) morphometrics–body proportions, (2) plumage color, (3) vocalizations, and (4) genetics. Using each of these character sets, separately or in combination, one can distinguish with 100% confidence the new species from its sister lineages. The new species is known from only 5 localities distributed in 2 distinct mountain ranges, 1 on the eastern slopes of the Planalto da Conquista, between the municipalities of Boa Nova and Iguaí, and another in the Serra das Lontras, ∼100 km to the southeast and only 37 km from the coast. The new species primarily inhabits undisturbed montane forest, from 660 to 1,140 m a.s.l. We estimated an area of occupancy of the species of only 5,885 ha and a density of 0.49 individuals ha−1, resulting in a total estimated population of 2,883 individuals. Forest remnants are under severe pressure from clandestine timber extraction and outright deforestation. Under IUCN criteria, this new species should be classified as “Endangered.”

Description of the Nest and Egg of an Atlantic Forest Endemic, the Black-headed Berryeater, Carpornis melanocephala (Cotingidae)

Abstract We describe the nest and egg of the Black-headed Berryeater (Carpornis melanocephala), an Atlantic Forest endemic considered vulnerable to extinction. The nest was in a montane evergreen primary forest area in a tree fork 4.2 m above the ground. It was cup shaped and constructed mainly of leaves and stems, resembling a pile of aerial leaf litter. It held just one egg that was incubated solely by the female. The male was near the nest, and inspected it once while being observed.

The Orange-breasted Thornbird (Phacellodomus ferrugineigula) (Furnariidae): A New Effective Host of Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis) (Icteridae)

Abstract Over 250 bird species have been listed as victims of the Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis), a well-known obligate brood parasite. Five of the nine species of Phacellodomus (thornbirds) have been listed as victims, but none has been reported rearing cowbird fledglings. I report observations of a pair of Orange-breasted Thornbirds (Phacellodomus ferrugineigula) rearing two fledgling Shiny Cowbirds in southern Brazil. These data add a new host for the Shiny Cowbird and constitute the first report of a species of the genus Phacellodomus as an effective host of cowbirds.