Chatham Islands Oystercatcher
Haematopus chathamensis
Stocky wader with distinctive pied plumage, red eye surrounded by orange eye-ring, orange bill, and pink legs and feet in adults. Juvenile birds have paler skin and dark tip to bill. Found around rocky and sandy coasts of the Chatham Islands. Most often seen in pairs. Gives a high-pitched piping call in territorial defense and courtship. Chatham Oystercatcher distinguished from South Island Pied Oystercatcher (SIPO) by smaller size and smudged border between black and white on breast.
Identification
The Chatham oystercatcher has distinctive black and white plumage and a long, thick orange-red beak. The head, neck, breast, back, wings and tail are black. The lower underparts are white with an unclear demarcation on the breast. The irises are red and the eyes have orange orbital rings. The short, thick legs are pink. Adults are about 48 centimetres (19 in) in length.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Haematopus chathamensis
- Authority
- Hartert, EJO, 1927
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Haematopodidae
- Genus
- Haematopus
Range and habitat
The Chatham oystercatcher is only found on the Chatham Islands, an archipelago about 680 kilometres (420 mi) south east of New Zealand. Each of the four main islands has small breeding populations.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The Chatham oystercatcher feeds on molluscs and marine worms, digging them out of the sand with its beak and hammering the shells to open them. They prefer foraging on coastline to lagoon shoreline, foraging mostly on intertidal rock platforms and sandy beaches (though some birds preferred pasture).<p>The nest is built on the beach on sandy or rocky shores and consists of a simple scrape. Sometimes it is built among low vegetation and may be rather more elaborate. Two or three eggs are usually laid. Young birds left their birth territory about 33 days after fledging. Juvenile birds become mature at about three years of age, and the lifespan is about eight years. The success rate of each pair averages 0.44 fledglings per breeding season, with flooding the main cause of egg loss.
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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