Luis Ortiz-Catedral

World Parrot Trust · Oceania Conservation Program

Avian malaria is recognised as a potential threatening factor for endangered New Zealand birds; nevertheless, analyses of its prevalence are few and often retrospective, following outbreaks in managed species. We conducted an opportunistic polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based survey for Plasmodium on a remnant population of red-fronted parakeet (C...

The three species of New Zealand’s endemic Mohoua genus are sole hosts of the obligate brood parasitic Long-tailed Cuckoo (Eudynamys taitensis), making their intrageneric phylogenetic relationships particularly important for coevolutionary studies. Also, recent molecular phylogenetic analyses have not identified the family-level placement of this g...

We present the first population estimate for the little known and critically endangered Malherbe's parakeet Cyanoramphus malherbi inhabiting Maud Island, New Zealand. From March 2007 to May 2009 we conducted surveys for the species at this site to document the status of this translocated population and to determine the relative value of Maud Island...

Beak and feather disease virus (BFDV) infections are often fatal to both captive and wild parrot populations. Its recent discovery in a wild population of native red-fronted parakeets has raised concerns for the conservation of native parrots, all of which are threatened or endangered. The question of a recent introduction versus a native genotype...

Understanding the population dynamics of endangered species is crucial to their conservation. Stochastic population models can be used to explore factors involved in population change, contributing to the understanding of a species’ population dynamics. Norfolk Island Green Parrots Cyanoramphus cookii have undergone significant population fluctuati...

The Galápagos Land Iguana, Conolophus subcristatus, is a Galápagos endemic occurring throughout the archipelago, at elevations from sea level to 1700 m. Its existence is threatened across most of its range by introduced browsers and predators. Fernandina Island, a young island with an active volcano, is the only major island without introduced pred...

Male and female adult Floreana mockingbird (Mimus trifasciatus) have monomorphic plumage features that make them impossible to sex in the field. In this study, we use discriminant function analysis (DFA), a widely used technique, to assess the best measures to determine sex. We measured six morphological characteristics (mass, beak depth, beak widt...

The beak and feather disease virus (family Circovirdae) is a virus of concern in the conservation of wild Psittaciformes globally. We conducted a PCR screening for the beak and feather disease virus (BFDV) using samples collected during previous field studies (1993–2014) in five populations of parrots of the Southern Hemisphere: Eclectus parrots (E...

Determining the size of translocated populations of endemic New Zealand species is essential for assessing their management requirements; however generating estimates can be constrained by the accessibility of sites, particularly for cryptic or difficult to monitor species released on remote islands. In this study, we aimed to produce estimates of...

Cannibalism is a common behaviour among snakes, but it has not yet been verified for any of the nine species of Galápagos racer (Pseudalsophis spp.), a group endemic to the Galápagos archipelago, Ecuador. Galápagos racers are opportunistic generalists feeding on a variety of vertebrate prey. There are a few anecdotal and suspected attempts of canni...

The Floreana mockingbird (Mimus trifasciatus) is one of the most endangered passerines in the world, with a global population of c. 400 individuals, restricted to two isolated islets: Champion and Gardner-by-Floreana. Due to its rarity and the inaccessibility to these islets, the biology of the Floreana mockingbird has remained poorly documented. H...

The four Mimus species (mockingbirds) inhabiting the Galapagos archipelago have non-overlapping distributions. Here we report the co-occurrence of two Mimus species on one islet in the archipelago, Gardner-by-Floreana, where the native species is M. trifasciatus. In February 2012, an unusual mockingbird was heard and observed constructing a nest on...

Predation by centipedes on vertebrates has been reported in the wild and in captivity but reports of centipede predation on snakes are rare. Here we report the first known case of a scolopendrid centipede preying on a young terrestrial snake in the Galapagos Islands.

The behaviour and diet of the Tasman parakeet (Cyanoramphus cookii) have not been quantitively described. We quantified the relative frequency of behaviours and diversity of food items for the species during autumn and winter to help refine the current management of the species. We also collected information on the availability of one of their main...

We report on the status of vertebrates on Floreana Island and Gardner-by-Floreana islet, Galapagos, comparing the species that we recorded in 2010 at 29 count points and while walking between them, with records from the previous two centuries compiled from the literature. On Floreana, we recorded 33 of the 50 indigenous species that had been record...

Background Haemoproteus and Plasmodium species are widespread avian blood parasites. Several Plasmodium species are known for their high virulence and have caused significant declines in naïve bird populations. The impact of closely related Haemoproteus parasites is largely unknown. Recently we reported a lethal disease in two parrot aviaries cause...

Supplemental information

Background: Parasites can exert selection pressure on their hosts through effects on survival, on reproductive success, on sexually selected ornament, with important ecological and evolutionary consequences, such as changes in population viability. Consequently, hemoparasites have become the focus of recent avian studies. Infection varies significa...

The problem: 1. Shortage of nest sites for Norfolk Island green parrots safe from cat and rat predation or competition with introduced birds. 2. Lack of intensive management of nest sites or monitoring to understand parrot trends. 3. Nest boxes and protection of natural nest sites had been effective before in recovering parrot numbers but the ongoi...

Pathogen outbreaks in the wild can contribute to a population's extinction risk. Concern over the effects of pathogen outbreaks in wildlife is amplified in small, threatened populations, where degradation of genetic diversity may hinder natural selection for enhanced immunocompetence. Beak and feather disease virus (BFDV) was detected for the first...

Perception of ultraviolet (UV) light, mediated by the avian short-wavelength sensitive-1 (SWS1) opsin, is important for birds in a range of functional contexts, including foraging, mate choice, and offspring recognition. The maximum absorption wavelength of avian SWS1 opsins can shift in and out of UV wavelengths because of residue changes at funct...

I conducted observations on the diet of the Floreana mockingbird (Mimus trifasciatus) during its breeding season in February and March 2011. The Floreana mockingbird is a critically endangered species restricted to Gardner and Champion Islets off the coast of Floreana Island, in the Galápagos Islands, Ecuador. During 11 days, 172 feeding bouts of a...

This document details best practice techniques for the translocation of red-crowned parakeet (kākāriki, Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae novaezelandiae) and yellow-crowned parakeet (kākāriki, Cyanoramphus auriceps). It contains methods used in the translocation process, from selecting the most appropriate population and time of year for translocation, a...

We present counts of white blood cells of wild and clinically normal red-crowned parakeets (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae) from 2 island populations in New Zealand. Total white blood cell counts on slides prepared in the field and counts of relative proportion of basophils, eosinophils, heterophils, lymphocytes and monocytes were determined for 33 in...

Translocation is the movement of a group of individuals from one site to another. Conservationists and wildlife managers around the world use translocation to new and/or newly safe habitats as a tool for preserving and propagating threatened species whose populations are surviving at only few and vulnerable localities. The success of translocations...

Echeandia novogaliciana and E. crudeniana are described from western Mexico. Echeandia novogaliciana is known from three populations, one in the state of Nayarit and two in Zacatecas. Likewise, E. crudeniana is known from two populations in the municipality of Bahía de Banderas, Nayarit. For both species, illustrations are provided and morphologica...

The negative effects of introduced nest predators on the breeding success of endemic New Zealand parrots are well documented, as is their role in the general decline of these species. In contrast, little is known about the intrinsic intra-brood dynamics responsible for modulating fledging success in parrots breeding at sites free of introduced nest...

Supplementary Table 1 List of full genomes BFDV sequences used in maximum-likelihood phylogenetic analysis

This plan was developed in February 2012 during the workshop "Searching for Solutions for the Control of the Avian Parasite, Philornis downsi". Charlotte Causton and Francesca Cunninghame (Charles Darwin Foundation) and Wacho Tapia (Galapagos National Park Service) organized the workshop. The workshop was sponsored by Galapagos Conservancy, Galapag...

Orange-fronted parakeets (Cyanoramphus malherbi) are New Zealand's rarest parakeet species with a global population of less than 500 individuals on remnant mainland populations and reintroduced populations on offshore islands. Since there is limited information about habitat preferences by this species on offshore islands I characterised habitat us...

Subtle sexual dimorphism and its perception in apparently monomorphic bird species warrant assessment of how birds identify the sex of conspecifics, particularly of prospective mates. Visual sensitivity and its potential co-variation with cryptic sexual dichromatism are still uninvestigated in most avian taxa. Using molecular sexing, reflectance sp...

We studied a population of the critically endangered Malherbe's parakeet (Cyanoramphus malherbi), following the release of 62 captive-bred individuals on Maud Island, New Zealand, to identify and characterise nesting sites in a novel island environment. Previous work on Malherbe's parakeets consisted of limited observations on remnant mainland popu...

Psittacine beak and feather disease (PBFD) is a viral disease distributed worldwide with a potentially critical impact on many rare parrots. While efforts have been made to determine its prevalence in wild and captive psittacines, only limited work has been done to document complete genomes of its causative agent, beak and feather disease virus (BF...

Here I report on a small scale study aimed at generating baseline information on the immune response of wild red-fronted parakeets, as assessed by blood cell counts, and subcutaneous challenge with phytohaemagglutinin (PHA), a mitogen that causes swelling at the point of injection. Eleven parakeets captured in mist-nets were injected into the right...

We conducted opportunistic observations on the diet of translocated orange-fronted parakeets (Cyanoramphus malherbi) on Maud Island to provide a first account of the diversity of food types ingested in the wild by this critically endangered species. Orange-fronted parakeets consumed fruits and leaves of 14 plant species as well as non–dietary items...

Screening for pathogenic micro-organisms is an essential component of translocationbased conservation management. While there are some data on pathogens in New Zealand passerines, little is known about the distribution and prevalence of pathogens infecting New Zealand Psittaciformes. We conducted a survey for pathogens of the vulnerable New Zealand...

Psittacine beak and feather disease (PBFD) is a highly infectious and potentially fatal viral disease of parrots and their allies caused by the beak and feather disease virus (BFDV). Abnormal feather morphology and loss of feathers are common clinical symptoms of the disease. PBFD also damages the lymphoid tissue and affected birds may die as a res...

We studied red‐crowned parakeets (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae) reintroduced onto Tiritiri Matangi Island, New Zealand from 2004 to 2006, in order to provide baseline information regarding nesting sites and nesting success of this population. We found 48 nests both in natural nesting sites and in nest boxes, in all three major habitat types on the i...

The Kermadec red-crowned parakeet Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae was driven to extinction on Raoul Island over 150 years ago by introduced cats Felis catus and rats (Rattus norvegicus and R. exulans). These predators were eradicated from the island (2,938 ha) between 2002-04 during the world’s largest multispecies eradication project. In 2008 we docum...

At least four populations of the red-crowned parakeet (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae) have been established via translocation within New Zealand over the last 40 years, but reproductive parameters of these populations have not been documented. We quantified differences in clutch parameters and reproductive success for a translocated population of thi...

Tigridia pugana (Iridaceae: Tigridieae) is described as a new species. It is characterized by producing bulbils in the axils of the cauline leaves. The flower of Tigridia pugana resembles that of T. pulchella B.l. rob. but differs by having longer style branches that are bifid their full length, longer inner tepals and shorter ovary and fruit. So f...

Tigridia pugana (Iridaceae: Tigridieae) is described as a new species. It is characterized by producing bulbils in the axils of the cauline leaves. The flower of Tigridia pugana resembles that of T. pulchella B.L. Rob. but differs by having longer style branches that are bifid their full length, longer inner tepals and shorter ovary and fruit. So f...

Tigridia rzedowskiana (Tigridieae: Iridaceae) is a new species found in the state of Querétaro, Mexico. It is unique by its yellowish flowers with maroon spots, outer tepals obovate, obtuse to apiculate and inner tepals deltate-hastate and apiculate. The flowers open early in the morning. Tigridia rzedowskiana is morphologically similar to T. catar...

Tigridia suarezii (Iridaceae, Tigridieae) is a new species from Mexico. Its distinguishing features are the dark purple, almost black color of the spreading tepal limbs and the white to cream floral cup with dark purple spots and stripes. It is morphologically similar to T. alpestris subsp. obtusa and T. venusta, from which it differs in the more r...

Con base en información citológica, palinológica y secuencias de ADN se propone la elevación de Nemastylis subgénero Colima al nivel de género para incluir en éste a Nemastylis convoluta. Este nuevo género se caracteriza por presentar filamentos unidos, anteras libres con dehiscencia longitudinal, estilo dividido en tres brazos con seis ramas dispu...

Tigridia gracielae (Tigridieae: Iridaceae), from the state of México, is a new species morphologically similar to T. venusta, from the state of Michoacán. Tigridia gracielae differs from T. venusta in having shorter and narrower tepals, a longer staminal column, anthers fertile along their full length and shorter style branches. Both species share...

México es el centro de diversificación del género Tigridia (Tigridieae: Iridaceae). El accidentado relieve y la diversidad climática presentes en el país han favorecido el desarrollo de endemismos en este grupo. En los veranos de 1996 y 2000 se llevaron a cabo colectas botánicas a fin de ampliar el conocimiento de la distribución geográfica de la t...

SUMMARY The red-fronted parakeet Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae is a vulnerable New Zealand endemic with a fragmented distribution, mostly inhabiting offshore islands free of introduced mammalian predators. Four populations have been established since the 19 70s using captive-bred or wild-sourced individuals translocated to islands undergoing ecologic...