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Volume 50, No. 1

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The tropicbirds Phaethon spp. of the Islas Desventuradas archipelago, Chile


Authors

MANUEL MARÍN1,2 & RODRIGO GONZÁLEZ3
1Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Section of Ornithology, 900 Exposition Boulevard, Los Angeles, California 90007, USA
2Current address: Casilla 15 Melipilla, Chile (mma95@hotmail.com)
3Santa María 7178, Vitacura, Santiago, Chile

Citation

MARÍN, M. & GONZÁLEZ, R. 2022. The tropicbirds Phaethon spp. of the Islas Desventuradas archipelago, Chile. Marine Ornithology 50: 57 - 62

Submitted 27 October 2021, accepted 13 December 2021

Date Published: 2022/04/15
Date Online: 2022/03/18
Key words: archipelago, Islas Desventuradas, eastern South Pacific, Chile, Phaethon, tropicbirds

Abstract

We found nesting Red-billed and Red-tailed tropicbirds Phaethon aethereus and P. rubricauda in the Islas Desventuradas archipelago, Chile. We visited Islote González on 14-15 December 2020 and on 23 August 2021. During the December visit, we encountered a colony of Red-billed Tropicbirds totaling a minimum of 62 breeding pairs. The nests were in cavities on steep cliffs and slopes located mainly on the northern part of the island, and we were able to access 34, of which 11 had eggs, 11 had nestlings of different ages, and 12 were active but empty. During the August visit, we found 4 nests with adults attending but no eggs or nestlings, 1 nest with a chick close to fledging, and 1 adult attempting to take a nest site from a De Filippi's Petrel Pterodroma defilippiana. We visited San Ambrosio Island on 10-12 December 2019, and we found only the Red-tailed Tropicbird breeding, as evidenced by 4 active nests: 2 with eggs, 1 with a well-grown nestling, and 1 with a pair of adults but no nest contents. However, we observed several pairs in aerial display and estimated the Red-tailed Tropicbird population to be at least 10-12 breeding pairs, in addition to the 5-6 pairs at Islote González and about 8 pairs at San Félix Island. Our findings represent a new Red-billed Tropicbird population and the largest breeding colony of the species for Chile. Furthermore, Islote González is one of the very few known places where sympatric breeding of Red-billed and Red-tailed tropicbirds occur. The White-tailed Tropicbird Phaethon lepturus is also known to nest at San Félix Island in the Desventuradas archipelago, but we did not visit that island. It appears that all three species of tropicbird nest in this archipelago.

References


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