The avifauna of Curaçá (Bahia): the last stronghold of Spix’s Macaw

The region of Curaca was one of the first regions of the Brazilian northeast to be ornithologically explored, and is known as the type locality and last stronghold of the Spix’s Macaw (Cyanopsitta spixii), now extinct in the wild. The region of Curaca has been considered of high conservation importance, particularly for holding some of the last relicts of Caraiba (Tabebuia caraiba) gallery forest in the Caatinga, and for representing the most obvious place to start a reintroduction program for C. spixii. Despite international interest in the plight of the macaw and frequent visits by ornithologists in the last 30 years, no general avian survey has been undertaken in the region. In this paper, we present data from three independent field seasons in the area, conducted in 1997-98, 2000, and 2011. We include data on 204 bird species recorded in the region, including 28 taxa endemic to the Caatinga. We present an analysis of the species present in the region, in relation to their preferred habitats and include natural history and breeding data for many of them. In particular, we include our observations on the last wild individual of C. spixii, and describe the nest and breeding behavior of Compsothraupis loricata. We also present an appendix with the list of all avian species recorded in the area, including the field season when these records were obtained, their seasonal and conservation status, the main habitats and localities where each record was obtained, a quantitative assessment of abundance for part of the species, and documentation (specimen, photograph, or audio recording) available for each species. We conclude that the region of Curaca is particularly species rich, and that a great part of this avian diversity results from its high habitat heterogeneity, which includes arboreal and shrubby Caatinga, gallery forests, riverine riparian habitats along the Rio Sao Francisco, and open areas and artificial ponds, which are particularly important for aquatic birds. Key-wordS: Birds, Caatinga, Cyanopsitta spixii, gallery forest, survey. observations remained largely unpublished, and no general surveys of the region’s avifauna have been published to date. Curaca is located in the heart of the Brazilian Caatinga, a habitat that represents one of the most isolated, differentiated, and botanically distinct semiarid regions on the planet (Sarmiento 1983). For many years, the Caatinga was considered a region with low endemism and lacking a biogeographical identity (Vanzolini 1976; Mares et al. 1981; Andrade-Lima 1982, Prance 1987), but recent studies have found a high level of avian diversity and endemism (Pacheco 2004). Climatically, the Caatinga is a region marked by its aridity, hot weather, and a short rainy season, which may fail to arrive on any given year (Ab’Saber 1977). The severe climate and geomorphological characteristics of the region may explain the existence of a highly endemic flora, with many