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Trends in the area of suitable breeding habitat for the Endangered Lake Titicaca Grebe Rollandia microptera, 2001–2020

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 March 2023

D. A. Villar Open the ORCID record for D. A. Villar [Opens in a new window] ,
P. R. Long ,
E. R. Gutierrez Tito ,
E. G. Moreno Terrazas  and
A. G. Gosler
D. A. Villar*
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Zoology Research and Administration Building, 11a Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3SZ, UK
P. R. Long
Affiliation:
Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Gipsy Lane, Oxford, OX3 0BP, UK
E. R. Gutierrez Tito
Affiliation:
Reserva Nacional del Titicaca, SERNANP, Pasaje 2 de Febrero N° 154, Puno, Peru Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas de la Universidad Nacional del Altiplano (UNA), Puno, Peru
E. G. Moreno Terrazas
Affiliation:
Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas de la Universidad Nacional del Altiplano (UNA), Puno, Peru
A. G. Gosler
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Zoology Research and Administration Building, 11a Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3SZ, UK Institute of Human Sciences, University of Oxford, 58a Banbury Road, Oxford, OX2 6QS, UK
*
*Author for correspondence: Daniel A. Villar, Email: daniel.villar@hertford.ox.ac.uk
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Summary

The Lake Titicaca Grebe Rollandia microptera is a poorly studied endemic species found in the Lake Titicaca watershed of Peru and Bolivia. Multiple surveys from the early 2000s indicated that the species was suffering a rapid population decline with an unknown cause. At the same time as these surveys, reports emerged that there was an increase in burning of the totora wetlands which are thought to be the primary habitat for the Lake Titicaca Grebe. However, since 2003, no work has been published either on the current population of the Lake Titicaca Grebe, or the extent of the totora wetlands in the Lake Titicaca region. This paper used satellite data to monitor the change in extent of habitat potentially suitable for the Lake Titicaca Grebe to determine whether habitat loss is likely to be a major driver of population declines in this species. We found that the extent of potentially suitable wetland remained stable between 2001 and 2020, though there are more local regional trends of change in extent of totora. We also found that multiple areas exist that might support Lake Titicaca Grebe populations, but where ornithological knowledge is lacking. We suggest no change to the IUCN status of the Lake Titicaca Grebe, but recommend that further fieldwork is required to monitor the species’ current population, especially in previously unstudied but potentially habitable areas.

Keywords

Satellite MonitoringWetland ConservationSchoenoplectus californicus subsp. tatoraLake TiticacaGrebes
Type
Research Article
Information
Bird Conservation International , Volume 33 , 2023 , e52
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of BirdLife International

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