The Ecology and Conservation Group
Luis Ortiz Catedral

RESEARCH INTERESTS

I have two main research interests: the biology and conservation of parrots (Aves: Psittaciformes) and the systematics and conservation of New World Tigridieae (Iridaceae).

Biology and conservation of parrots (Aves: Psittaciformes)
The parrots and cockatoos (Aves: Psittaciformes) are perhaps the most popular group of birds; however the biology of most species remain unknown. This is of concern given that the order Psittaciformes is one of the most endangered groups of birds. To design management plans aimed to species recovery it is critical to determine factors affecting survival and productivity. In the past, I was involved in a project studying lilac-crowned Amazons (Amazona finschi) under the direction of Dr. Katherine Renton, at the Chamela-Cuixmala Biosphere Reserve, in the Pacific Coast of Mexico. From June 2004 to March 2006 Dianne Brunton (Massey University), Terry Greene (Department of Conservation, New Zealand) and I studied the breeding biology of a translocated population of red-crowned kakariki (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae) on Tiritiri Matangi Island, in the Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand. This project was part of my master's degree and resulted in novel information about the nesting success and inter-annual productivity of the red-crowned kakariki. The research focused on the effects of hatching asynchrony on the growth and survival of chicks. In addition we determined primary sex ratios and the dynamics of food delivery between parents and offspring using infra-red video-cameras.

At present I am studying a PhD degree in Conservation Biology and my research topic focuses on newly translocated populations of New Zealand parakeets. This work is been done under supervision by Dianne Brunton, Doug Armstrong, and Mark Hauber (University of Auckland). There are two components to the above project: reintroduction and monitoring of orange-fronted parakeets (Cyanoramphus malherbi) on Maud Island, and translocationof red-crowned kakariki (C. novaezelandiae) to Motuihe Island and Tawharanui Regional Park. Altogether we have released and monitored 70 parakeets of both species on Maud and Motuihe Islands ( TVONE, Massey News, & NZ Herald) and soon we will release a similar number on Tawharanui Regional Park. An exciting element of this research is that it will combine captive and wild sourced individuals in an attempt to test whether or not the captive environment causes poor behavioural adjustment in New Zealand parakeets. We have also completed a field trip to Rangitahua (Raoul Island) one of the most remote populations of red-crowned kakariki. A little side project to my PhD is an analysis of video footage of nesting females of kakapo (Strigops habroptilus) the world's most bizarre parrot.

Systematics and conservation of New World Tigridieae
This research is done in collaboration with Aaron Rodriguez (Email: ) from the Universidad de Guadalajara, Mexico. New World Tigridieae are bulbous plants with complex floral structures. The taxonomy of the group is problematical given that valuable floral characters are lost in herbarium specimens. In 2001 I joined Aaron Rodriguez and since then we have collected several specimens of Tigridieae throughout Mexico. We have performed pollen and chromosome analysis in combination with analysis of floral and vegetative structures in the last five years. As a result we have proposed a new genus of plant and a number of new species. Currently we are working on a project dealing with the conservation status of Mexican Tigridieae and the role of conservation areas in preserving the diversity of this group of plants.

RESEARCH

Habitat use and reproductive success of newly translocated red-crowned kakariki (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae) in New Zealand: Captive vs wild sourced individuals.

The objective of my research is to document patterns of movement and habitat use of newly translocated New Zealand parakeets and its relationship to origin (i.e. captive vs wild sourced) and proxies of health. Translocations are a widespread tool for conservation worldwide but only recently these have been designed as experiments. Health and immune response of translocated individuals have been widely cited as potential factors affecting success of translocations but these have not been in detail, particularly among parrots.

Specifically, my research aims are the following:

1. Establish three parakeet populations via translocation in the Auckland Region (Motuihe Island, Tawharanui Regional Park and Rakino Island).
2. Explore the relationship between body condition, immune response (assessed using the PHA skin test) and survival of parakeets in a new environment (namely, translocation sites).
3. Determine home ranges of translocated individuals and quantify differences in these between captive-bred and wild-sourced parakeets.
4. Determine habitat use patterns (i.e. vegetation structure and composition) of translocated individuals and quantify differences between captive-bred and wild-sourced individuals.
5. Document the occurrence of selected pathogens in natural and translocated populations of red-crowned kakariki include the remote Raoul Island population.

FUNDING BODIES

• Translocation of red-crowned kakariki (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae):
  Motuihe Trust
  Department of Conservation
  Auckland Regional Council
  JS Watson Trust - Forest and Bird
• Reproductive biology of red-crowned kakariki :
  Supporters of Tiritiri Matangi Inc., New Zealand
  The Parrot Society, UK
  Avifauna Protecta
  Sigma Xi The Scientific Research Society
  Idea Wild
• The 24th International Ornithological Conference (Hamburg Germany, August 2006):
  Institute of Avian Research
• Protection categories of threatened Tigridieae in Mexico:
  the National Council for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity (CONABIO, Mexico).

PUBLICATION/ REPORTS

Rodriguez A & Ortiz-Catedral L 2006.Tigridia pugana (Iridaceae:Tigridieae), a new species from Jalisco, Mexico. Acta Botanica Mexicana 76: 1-8.

Ortiz Catedral L 2006. Breeding ecology of a translocated population of red-crowned kakariki Cyanomorphus novaezelandiae on Tiritiri Matangi Island, New Zealand. Unpublished MSc Thesis Massey University, New Zealand |Abstract|

Rodriguez A & Ortiz-Catedral L 2005. Tigridia rzedowskiana(Tigridieae: Iridaceae), una nueva especie del estado de Queretaro, Mexico.Acto Botanica Mexicana 71:53-59.

Rodriguez A & Ortiz-Catedral L 2005. Tigridia suarezii (Tigridia: Iraceae) sa new species from Jalisco, Mexico. Novon 15: 354-357.

Rodriguez A & Ortiz-Catedral L 2003. Colima (Tigridieae: Iridaceae) a new genus from western Mexico and a new species: Colima tuitensis from Jalisco. Acta Botanica Mexicana 65: 51-60.

Rodriguez A & Ortiz-Catedral L 2003. Tigridia gracielae (Tigridieae: Iridaceae) a new species from Mexico. Acta Botanica Mexicana 64: 31-36.

Rodriguez A, Ortiz-Catedral L & Heaton E 2003. Tres nuevas localidades de tigridias endemicas de Mexico. Acta Botanica Mexicana 62: 1-8.

Rodriguez A & Ortiz-Catedral L 2002. Nuevas localidades de tigridias mexicanas. Ibugana 10: 61-66.

Rodriguez A & Ortiz-Catedral L 2002. Nuevos registros de Iridaceas mexicanas. Boletin IBUG 1-2: 25-36.

Rodriguez A & Ortiz-Catedral L 2001. La tribu Tigridieae (Iridaceae) en Mexico. Scientia-CUCBA 3:123-136.

CONFERENCES ATTENDED

2006 - The Joint Conference of the NZ Ecological Society and the Ecological Society of Australia, Wellington, New Zealand.

2005 - Australian Ornithological Conference (the Ornithological Society of New Zealand and Birds Australia), Bleinhem, New Zealand.
Ortiz-Catedral L & Brunton DH 2005. Hatching asynchrony and chick growth in the red-crowned kakariki (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae).
|Abstract (PDF, 75KB) |Oral presentation (PDF, 823KB)|

2005 - XIX Annual Meeting of the Society for Conservation Biology, Brasilia, Brazil. (July 2005)
Ortiz-Catedral L & Brunton DH 2005. Reproductive biology of the red-crowned kakariki (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae) on Tiritiri Matangi Island, New Zealand.
|Abstract (PDF, 54KB) |Poster (DOC, 657KB)|

2005 - Australasian Society of the Study of Animal Behaviour Conference, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
Ortiz-Catedral L & Brunton DH 2005. Chick mortality in the absence of predation: on the breeding strategy of red-crowned kakariki (Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae).
|Abstract (PDF, 78KB) |Oral presentation (PDF, 1.0MB)|

2003 - MONOCOTS III: The third International Conference on the Comparative Biology of the Monocotyledons, Claremont, United States of America (March 2003)
Ortiz-Catedral L & Rodriguez A 2003. An overview of the conservation status of nine Mexican species of Tigridieae (Iridaceae).

2002 - BOTANY 2002, Wisconsin, United States of America.
Rodriguez A & Ortiz-Catedral L 2002. Cytology and pollen morphology of Ainea conzattii and Cardiostigma hintonii (Tigridieae: Iridaceae) and their phylogenetic consequences.

2001 - XIV Congreso Mexicano de Botanica, Queretaro, Mexico (October 2001).
Rodriguez A, Reyez-Jimenez N & Ortiz-Catedral L 2001. Morfologia polinica de Nemastylis convoluta (Tigridiae: Iridaceae); sus consecuencias filogeneticas.

AFFILIATION to scientific and conservation organisations

• Association of Field Ornithologists
• Australasian Society for the Study of Animal Behaviour
• Ornithological Society of New Zealand
• Red Mesoamericana de Conservación de Psittacidos
• Supporters of Tiritiri Matangi Inc.
• World Parrot Trust