Abstract

PINA-ORTIZ, Alberto; CASTILLO-GUERRERO, José Alfredo; ROCHA-ARMENTA, Jesús Alfonso  and  GUEVARA-MEDINA, Miguel Ángel. Presence and abundance of breeding birds on islands of Mazatlan bay, Sinaloa, Mexico. Huitzil [online]. 2017, vol.18, n.1, pp.87-101. ISSN 1870-7459.

We recorded the presence and abundance of birds, as well as the habitat and breeding temporality of species at Pajaros, Venados, Lobos, Hermano Norte and Hermano Sur islands, located in Mazatlan bay. We conducted seven surveys between November 2014 and May 2015, plus information collected during May 2004 and 2015 by walking on the study islands. We observed a total of 59 species of birds, of which 15 were breeding species: Dendrocygna autumnalis (Black-bellied Whistling-Duck), Phaethon aethe reus (Red-billed Tropicbird), Sula leucogaster (Brown Booby), Pelecanus occidentalis (Brown Pelican), Ardea herodias (Great Blue Heron), Ardea alba (Great Egret), Egretta thula (Snowy Egret), Bubulcus ibis (Cattle Egret), Nycticorax nycticorax (Black-crowned Night-Heron), Nyctanassa violácea (Yellow-crowned Night-Heron), Eudocimus albus (White Ibis), Coragyps atratus (Black Vulture), Haematopus palliatus (American Oystercatcher), Larus hermanni (Heermann’s Gull) and Falco peregrinus (Peregrine Falcon). For P. aethereus and S. leucogaster there were not previous reports indicating breeding on these islands; also we confirmed the nesting of L. hermanni. Pájaros Island harbors the largest number of breeding species (10 species). Pelecanus occidentalis was the most abundant species with 1 559 individuals, followed by Fregata magnificens (Magnificent Frigatebird) and Sula nebouxii (Blue-footed Booby) with 1 526 and 1 100 individuals respectively, although for the last two species there were no records of their breeding. These islands are under federal protection, but a monitoring effort is required to know the status and trends of bird populations, and the effects of disturbances by human activities and by introduced species.

Keywords : Waterbirds; Red-billed Tropicbird; Brown Booby; natural protected areas.

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