Range extension of the Tricolored Munia in Mexico: new record of central-western of Veracruz

• Main Authors: Axel Fuentes-Moreno, Víctor Vásquez-Cruz
• Format: Article
• Language: Spanish
• Published: Sección Mexicana del Consejo Internacional para la Preservación de las Aves, A.C. 2018-06-01
• Series: Huitzil
• Subjects: especie invasora; amatlán de los reyes; región de las altas montañas; estrildidae; zonas agrícolas; lonchura malacca.
• Online Access: http://ojs.huitzil.net/index.php/huitzil/article/view/344

The Tricolored Munia (Lonchura malacca) is an exotic species which arrived in Mexico in the late twentieth century. Currently, it has spread to six states in the southeast of the country, in which the coastal plain of the Gulf of Mexico has probably been its main route of expansion. We report the first formal record of this bird for Veracruz, supported with photographs. We recorded this species in Colegio de Postgraduados, Campus Córdoba, municipality of Amatlán de los Reyes, in an area with pastures and crops, consistent with that described in other locations where it was registered previously. However, the altitude and longitude of this record are greater than previous records in Mexico. Considering the potential negative effects of an exotic species such as the Tricolored Munia for some crops and native birds, we recommend monitor their presence and abundance in the country.