Title
Status of the masked finfoot in Cambodia
Author(s)
Mulligan, B.;Rours, V.;Sun, V.;Sam, H.;Goes, F.
Published
2012
Publisher
Cambodian Journal of Natural History
Abstract
The masked finfoot Heliopais personata is a globally threatened waterbird whose status on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species has recently been elevated from Vulnerable to Endangered. This paper documents current knowledge of this species in Cambodia, reviewing historical (pre-1998) records and collating all known observations and evidence of breeding between 1998 and 2010. We discuss the status of masked finfoots with the aim of highlighting important sites for conservation as well as knowledge gaps and areas for future surveys. The species was recorded in Cambodia on 31 occasions between 1998 and 2010, through 11 months of the year, by means of direct observation of wild and captive birds and by camera-trapping. Masked finfoots have been found in lowland forested river systems in eight provinces across the Cardamom Mountains (dry season), the Northern Plains (wet season, including breeding records), the Eastern Plains (mid dry to early wet season), and the Tonle Sap swamp forest (year-round, including wet season breeding records). A pat ern is emerging of the birds using rivers late in the dry season through to the early wet season, but the scale of any seasonal movements is unknown. Further research is required to better understand threats, seasonal status and breeding behaviour, and there is a need for targeted surveys during the wet season. The limited number of localities where this species is regularly recorded, and the paucity of records despite some dedicated searches in suitable habitats, indicate that this bird is genuinely scarce and of conservation concern. Cambodia, nonetheless, may host one of the most significant populations of masked finfoot in the world.
Keywords
conservation; heliopais personata; masked finfoot; status review; threats
Access Full Text
A full-text copy of this article may be available. Please email the WCS Library to request.
![]()
Back
PUB14378