Amami woodcock
Species of bird
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Amami woodcock (Scolopax mira) is a medium-sized wader. It is slightly larger and longer-legged than the Eurasian woodcock.
| Amami woodcock | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Charadriiformes |
| Family: | Scolopacidae |
| Genus: | Scolopax |
| Species: | S. mira |
| Binomial name | |
| Scolopax mira Hartert, 1916 | |
This species is a restricted-range endemic found only in forests on Amami Ōshima, Okinawa and Tokunoshima,[2] including some smaller, nearby islands (Kakeromajima and Tokashiki).[1] Due to the introduction of the invasive small Indian mongoose, their population has been declining.[3] Efforts to control the mongoose population have led to recovery of Amami woodcock, as documented on Amami where the mongoose has been successfully eradicated.[1] Insofar as its habits are known, they are similar to the Eurasian woodcock.
Taxonomy and systematics
The Amami woodcock was originally described as a subspecies of the Eurasian woodcock, due to a juvenile that resembled the Eurasian woodcock in coloration. Later, some argued that the Amami woodcock was a distinct species—Kobayashi in 1979 and Cramp & Simmons in 1983. Comparison between the two species revealed their distinct physical features, and led to the emergence of the Amami woodcock as a distinct species.[4]
