Overview Of the Extinct Guadalupe Red-Shafted Flicker
The Guadalupe Red-shafted Flicker was a woodpecker subspecies that was formerly restricted to Guadalupe Island, located off the northwestern coast of Baja California, Mexico. Sadly, this subspecies is now extinct, with its last recorded sighting in 1906.
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Scientific Classification:
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Aves
- Order: Piciformes
- Family: Picidae
- Genus: Colaptes
- Species: Auratus
- Subspecies: Rufipileus (Guadalupe Red-shafted Flicker)
Identification
While the exact identification details of the Guadalupe Red-shafted Flicker are not widely documented due to its extinction, it likely shared similar characteristics with other red-shafted flicker subspecies.
As a member of the northern flicker complex, the Guadalupe red-shafted flicker likely resembled other red-shafted flickers. It probably had barred brown upperparts, a buff to olive-yellow underside, and bright red shafts on the wings and tail. No specimens are known to exist today.
Location
Historically, this flicker was endemic to Guadalupe Island, located 260 km off the coast of Baja California, Mexico. This remote island constitutes the only known range of the extinct subspecies.
Unique Traits
The Guadalupe Red-shafted Flicker, as a subspecies, would have possessed unique traits specific to its evolutionary and ecological context. Unfortunately, specific details about these traits are limited due to the subspecies’ extinction.
However, its presence on a remote island like Guadalupe suggests adaptations to the island’s specific habitat and ecological niche.
Summary
The Guadalupe red-shafted flicker was a little-known subspecies of northern flicker endemic to Guadalupe Island. It was last observed in 1906 and is now considered extinct.
The validity of the subspecies has been questioned, and its evolutionary relationship to mainland flickers is unclear. Recent colonization of the island by vagrants of another red-shafted race may indicate C. a. rufipileus was an invalid taxon.
Frequently Asked Questions:
01. Why did the Guadalupe flicker become extinct?
The most likely cause of extinction was predation by feral cats combined with habitat degradation from overgrazing by goats introduced to the island. The small population was vulnerable to these threats.
02. What is the current status of Guadalupe Island?
Feral goats have been eradicated from Guadalupe Island, enabling the vegetation to recover. This habitat restoration has allowed vagrant flickers from the mainland to naturally recolonize the island in recent decades.
03. Why is the validity of the Guadalupe Red-shafted Flicker as a distinct subspecies debated?
The validity of the Guadalupe Red-shafted Flicker as a distinct subspecies is debated due to the limited historical data and specimens available for study. Taxonomists and ornithologists rely on detailed morphological and genetic analyses to establish the distinctiveness of subspecies.
