WEST INDIES
ENDEMIC BIRD SPECIES
The Caribbean or Antilles include the Caribbean Sea, numerous islands and the surrounding coasts. More than 700 islands, islets, reefs and cays form island arcs, a type of archipelago in arc-shaped alignment.
The West indies include the Greater Antilles on the north, and the Lesser Antilles on south and east (including the Leeward Antilles), and the Bahama Archipelago (Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands).
There are two types of islands. Several islands such as Aruba, Barbados, Bonaire, the Cayman Islands, Saint Croix, the Bahamas and Antigua, have relatively flat grounds of non-volcanic origin.
However, several other islands such as Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Dominica, Montserrat, Saba, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Thomas, Saint John, Tortola, Grenada, Saint Vincent, Guadeloupe, Martinique and Trinidad and Tobago, have rugged mountainous areas.
These islands have a tropical climate and the rains vary according to the elevation. The mountainous islands show both rainforest and semi-desert areas, created by warm, moist trade winds. The sun shines all year round, with six dry months in the first half of the year, and six wet months in the last half. Hurricanes sometimes batter the region.
There are numerous endemic bird species in the West Indies. Several species can occur in a limited area and nowhere else, but a bird species can also be endemic to the whole region or only to a few islands, or to one single island or to part of it.
There are about 150 endemic bird species in the Caribbean, but more than 550 species have been recorded in the area. Many species are vulnerable to habitat loss, introduced predators, human developments and pet trade, the latter leading several species to extinction. This is especially the case of the Cuban Red Macaw (Ara tricolor), whereas the hypothetical Martinique Amazon (Amazona martinicana) suffered habitat loss due to clearance for agriculture, but several other birds are threatened or are yet extinct.
Lesser Antilles' endemic bird species
Barbados Bullfinch - Loxigilla barbadensis - Sporophile de Barbade
Barbuda Warbler - Setophaga súbita - Paruline de Barbuda
Blue-headed Hummingbird - Cyanophaia bicolor - Colibri à tête bleue
Brown Trembler - Cinclocerthia ruficauda - Trembleur brun
Forest Thrush - Cichlherminia lherminieri - Grive à pieds jaunes
Grenada Dove - Leptotila wellsi - Colombe de Grenade
Grenada Flycatcher - Myiarchus nugator - Tyran bavard
Grey Trembler - Cinclocerthia gutturalis - Trembleur gris
Guadeloupe Woodpecker - Melanerpes herminieri - Pic de Guadeloupe
Imperial Parrot - Amazona imperialis - Amazone impériale
Lesser Antillean Bullfinch - Loxigilla noctis - Sporophile rougegorge
Lesser Antillean Flycatcher - Myiarchus oberi - Tyran janeau
Lesser Antillean Pewee - Contopus latirostris - Moucherolle gobemouche
Lesser Antillean Saltator - Saltator albicollis - Saltator gros-bec
Lesser Antillean Swift - Chaetura martinica - Martinet chiquesol
Lesser Antillean Tanager - Tangara cucullata - Calliste dos-bleu
Martinique Oriole - Icterus bonana - Oriole de Martinique
Montserrat Oriole - Icterus oberi - Oriole de Montserrat
Plumbeous Warbler - Setophaga plumbea - Paruline caféiette
Purple-throated Carib - Eulampis jugularis - Colibri madère
Scaly-breasted Thrasher - Allenia fusca - Moqueur grivotte
Semper's Warbler - Leucopeza semperi - Paruline pied-blanc
St. Lucia Black Finch - Melanospiza richardsoni - Moisson pied-blanc
St. Lucia Oriole - Icterus laudabilis - Oriole de Sainte-Lucie
St. Lucia Parrot - Amazona versicolor - Amazone de Sainte-Lucie
St. Lucia Warbler - Setophaga delicata - Paruline de Sainte-Lucie
St. Vincent Parrot - Amazona guildingii - Amazone de Saint-Vincent
Red-necked Parrot - Amazona arausiaca - Amazone de Bouquet
Whistling Warbler - Catharopeza bishopi - Paruline de Saint-Vincent
White-breasted Thrasher - Ramphocinclus brachyurus - Moqueur gorge-blanche
Greater Antilles' endemic bird species
Puerto Rico's endemic bird species
Cayman Islands
Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic)
Non endemic bird species present in the West Indies
American Flamingo - Phoenicopterus ruber - Flamant des Caraïbes
Antillean Crested Hummingbird – Orthorhynchus cristatus – Colibri huppé
Antillean Nighthawk - Chordeiles gundlachii - Engoulevent piramidig
Greater Antillean Grackle - Quiscalus niger – Quiscale noir
Green-throated Carib - Eulampis holosericeus - Colibri falle-vert
Hispaniolan Woodpecker - Melanerpes striatus - Pic d’Hispaniola
Pearly-eyed Thrasher – Margarops fuscatus – Moqueur corossol
Red-legged Thrush – Turdus plumbeus – Merle vantard
White-cheeked Pintail - Anas bahamensis - Canard des Bahamas
White-crowned Pigeon - Patagioenas leucocephala - Pigeon à couronne blanche
Illustrations :
John Gerrard Keulemans (1842-1912)
Sources :
BIRDS OF THE WEST INDIES – by Herbert Raffaele, Kristin Williams et Tracy Pedersen – Helm – ISBN: 9780713649055
Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia
BirdLife International (BirdLife International)