Monitoring bird populations in Rocjá Pomtilá / Laguna Lachuá National Park, Guatemala

Project description:

Three persons from the community of Rocjá Pomtilá were trained as bird census takers in 2001 during a course of 8 months, under the responsibility of Proyecto Eco-Quetzal (Avendaño 2001, Eisermann 2001). Since then, point counts are carried out on 12 days each month, but from May 2002 the monitoring is under the responsibility of PROEVAL-RAXMU. For the methodology see Part I: Introduction and Methods.

Study site and base of the monitoring:

Altitude 200 m above sea level.

150 km² of rain forest of the Laguna Lachuá National Park.

Small Maya Q‘eqchi’ communities in the neighborhood.

First study of the avifauna 1998-2000 (Avendaño 2001).

Selection of three persons from the community of Rocjá Pomtilá.

Training of the census takers during 8 months in 2001.

Pont counts in the buffer zone of the National Park including primary rainforest, cardamom cultivations, secondary shrub.

Counts on 12 days monthly.

Results:

Number of observed species: 323

Number of Nearctic-Neotropical migrants: 78

5 globally threatened species

See table 1 for population densities of the most abundant bird species in the primary rainforest.

Table 1

Population density of the most abundant species in the Ik’bolay region, between Oct. 2001 and March 2002.
Species	Density in Indiv./ha (95% conf. int.)	n¹
Microrhopias quixensis (Thamnophilidae) Henicorhina leucosticta (Troglodytidae) Hylocichla mustelina ‡ (Turdidae) Habia fuscicauda (Thraupidae) Thryothorus maculipectus (Troglodytidae) Habia rubica (Thraupidae) Cercomacra tyrannina (Thamnophilidae) Formicarius analis (Formicariidae) Hylophilus ochraceiceps (Vireonidae) Hylophilus decurtatus (Vireonidae) Pteroglossus torquatus (Rhamphastidae) Automolus ochrolaemus (Furnariidae) Xiphorhynchus flavigaster (Dendrocolaptidae) Vireolanius pulchellus (Vireonidae) Lanio aurantius (Thraupidae) Lipaugus unirufus Columba nigrirostris (Columbidae) Ramphastos sulfuratus (Rhamphastidae)	9,4 (7,1-12,6) 5,2 (4,3-6,2) 3,7 (3,0-4,5) 3,3 (2,5-4,3) 3,0 (2,5-3,6) 2,8 (2,3-3,5) 2,5 (1,9-3,3) 2,1 (1,9-2,5) 2,1 (1,6-2,7) 1,8 (1,5-2,2) 1,7 (1,1-2,7) 1,6 (1,3-2,0) 1,3 (1,1-1,7) 1,0 (0,7-1,6) 1,0 (0,8-1,3) 0,6 (0,5-0,8) 0,6 (0,4-0,8) 0,6 (0,4-0,8)	203 236 145 135 193 160 109 198 117 122 85 112 128 74 94 89 72 46
1 - Sample size (Number of individuals), ‡ Nearctic-Neotropical migrant.

References

Avendaño, C. (2001): Informe final sobre la capacitación para el monitoreo de aves en el área de Rocjá Pomtilá. Reporte, Proyecto Eco-Quetzal, Cobán.

Eisermann, K. (2001): Evaluación de la realización de la capacitación de los registradores para el monitoreo de aves en Rocja Pontila. Reporte, Proyecto Eco-Quetzal, Cobán.

Eisermann, K. (2005): Noteworthy bird observations in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 125: 3-11.

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Bird Monitoring Program > Monitoring bird populations in Alta Verapaz > Monitoring in the Ik'bolay region

Monitoring bird populations in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. Part II: Monitoring in the Ik’bolay region.

References

Monitoring bird populations in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala.

Part II: Monitoring in the Ik’bolay region.