Cuban kite

Cuban kite
CITES Appendix I (CITES)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Accipitriformes
Family: Accipitridae
Genus: Chondrohierax
Species:
C. wilsonii
Binomial name
Chondrohierax wilsonii
(Cassin, 1847)

The Cuban kite (Chondrohierax wilsonii) is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, eagles and harriers. It is endemic to Cuba.

This species is classified as critically endangered by BirdLife International and the IUCN. The current population is estimated 50 to 249 mature birds. In the last 40 years the species has only been observed a handful of times with the latest published sighting in 2010 in Alejandro de Humboldt National Park.[1]

The Clements Checklist considered it as subspecies of the hook-billed kite until its 2022 revision.[2] A molecular phylogenetics analysis using mitochondrial DNA suggests that it warrants species status having diverged from the mainland lineage approximately 400,000 to 1.5 million years ago.[3]

Forest destruction and degradation is the leading cause of population decline, as well as the reduction in prey snail numbers and persecution by local farmers. Its apparently tame nature makes it an easy target for shooters.[4]

  1. ^ a b BirdLife International (2020). "Chondrohierax wilsonii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T22728485A181241481. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22728485A181241481.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Updates & Corrections – October 2022 – Clements Checklist".
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Johnson2007 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Cuban Kite | Chondrohierax wilsonii". EDGE of Existence. Retrieved 2019-04-13.