The splitting of the Greater Antillean Oriole Icterus dominicensis into four separate species, as detailed in a recent paper by Melissa Price and Bill Hayes, has formally been accepted by the American Ornithologists' Union. This taxonomic revision results in the creation of four new island endemics, the Bahama (I. northropi), Cuban (I. melanopsis), Hispaniolan (I. dominicensis) and Puerto Rican (I. portoricensis) orioles. New species are always a source of excitement, but in this case the intrigue is overshadowed by a sense of alarm and urgency.

The Bahama Oriole has entered the role call of species as one of the rarest birds in the Caribbean. It used to be found on the Bahamian islands of Abaco and Andros. However, the Abaco population was extirpated during the early 1990s (for reasons unknown) and there is strong evidence that the Andros population is in decline. Recent survey work on North Andros, Mangrove Cay and South Andros suggests a population of between 127 and 254 individuals. During a 1997 survey only one individual in juvenile plumage was seen, indicating a dramatically low reproductive output. The orioles live in mature c Read More