Fatu Hiva monarch
| Fatu Hiva monarch | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Monarchidae |
| Genus: | Pomarea |
| Species: | P. whitneyi |
| Binomial name | |
| Pomarea whitneyi Murphy & Mathews, 1928 | |
The Fatu Hiva monarch (Pomarea whitneyi) is a large flycatcher in the Monarchidae family. It is endemic to Fatu Hiva in the Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia.
It is critically endangered, because there has been a decline in excess of 90% over 21 years (three generations). The population is now thought to be as small as 50 birds, which equates to just 33 mature individuals. This decline is primarily attributed to the introduction of black rats, which were first observed in February 2000 and strongly correlates with the decline and near extinction of the Fatu Hiva monarch. Recent predator control has happened on Fatu Hiva, though it reduced the rate of territory loss from 60% in 2007–2009 to 30% in 2009–2011.
The binomial name commemorates the US philanthropist Harry Payne Whitney.
References
- ↑ BirdLife International (2013). "Pomarea whitneyi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.