Fauna of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Birds

As a small and isolated group of islands in two atolls 24 km apart in the eastern Indian Ocean, the number of species of resident landbirds (as opposed to seabirds and waders) is very small. These comprise the endemic subspecies of buff-banded rail, the introduced green junglefowl and helmeted guineafowl, the white-breasted waterhen, eastern reef egret, nankeen night heron and the introduced Christmas white-eye. Four other introduced species are now extinct in the Islands. Several other landbird species have been recorded occasionally, but none has established a breeding population.

Migratory waders recorded in the islands include some regular visitors as well as vagrants. None breeds there. However, North Keeling is important for breeding seabirds, with sizeable numbers of red-footed boobies, great and lesser frigatebirds, common noddies and white terns. Other breeding seabirds include wedge-tailed shearwaters, masked boobies, brown boobies, red-tailed and white-tailed tropicbirds, and sooty terns. It is possible that the herald petrel breeds there as well.

Presumably, before human occupation of the islands in the 19th century, seabirds bred on both atolls. However, with the establishment of a human population and the introduction of rodents to the southern atoll, significant seabird colonies are now restricted to the northern atoll of North Keeling. Although the Cocos islanders used to visit North Keeling regularly to harvest seabirds, this practice largely ceased with the establishment of Pulu Keeling National Park in 1995.

List of birds

Phasianidae

Red junglefowl, Gallus gallus - feral domestic fowl

Green junglefowl, Gallus varius - introduced, breeding

Helmeted guineafowl, Numida meleagris - introduced, breeding

Anatidae

Pacific black duck, Anas superciliosa - vagrant

Common teal, Anas crecca - vagrant

Hardhead, Aythya australis - vagrant

Procellariidae

Bulwer's petrel, Bulweria bulwerii - vagrant

Herald petrel, Pterodroma arminjoniana - possibly breeding

Wedge-tailed shearwater, Ardenna pacificus - breeding

Diomedeidae

Yellow-nosed albatross, Thalassarche chlororhynchos - vagrant

Phaethontidae

White-tailed tropicbird, Phaethon lepturus - breeding

Red-tailed tropicbird, Phaethon rubricauda - breeding

Sulidae

Masked booby, Sula dactylatra - breeding

Brown booby, Sula leucogaster - breeding

Red-footed booby, Sula sula - breeding

Phalacrocoracidae

Great cormorant, Phalacrocorax carbo - vagrant

Little black cormorant, Phalacrocorax sulcirostris - vagrant

Little pied cormorant, Phalacrocorax melanoleucos - vagrant

Fregatidae

Christmas frigatebird, Fregata andrewsi - vagrant

Lesser frigatebird, Fregata ariel - breeding

Great frigatebird, Fregata minor - breeding

Ardeidae

Great egret, Ardea alba - vagrant

Cattle egret, Ardea ibis - vagrant

Intermediate egret, Ardea intermedia - vagrant

Chinese pond heron, Ardeola bacchus - vagrant

Striated heron, Butorides striatus - vagrant

Little egret, Egretta garzetta - breeding?

White-faced heron, Egretta novaehollandiae - vagrant

Eastern reef egret, Egretta sacra - breeding

Western reef egret, Egretta gularis - vagrant

Nankeen night heron, Nycticorax caledonicus - breeding

Black-crowned night heron, Nycticorax nycticorax - vagrant

Black bittern, Ixobrychus flavicollis - vagrant

Yellow bittern, Ixobrychus sinensis - vagrant

Threskiornithidae

Glossy ibis, Plegadis falcinellus - vagrant

Phoenicopteridae

Greater flamingo, Phoenicopterus ruber - vagrant

Accipitridae

Swamp harrier, Circus approximans - vagrant

Chinese sparrowhawk, Accipiter soloensis - vagrant

Japanese sparrowhawk, Accipiter gularis - vagrant

Falconidae

Nankeen kestrel, Falco cenchroides - vagrant

Rallidae

White-breasted waterhen, Amaurornis phoenicurus - breeding

Cocos buff-banded rail, Gallirallus philippensis andrewsi - endemic subspecies

Watercock, Gallicrex cinerea - vagrant

Scolopacidae

Common sandpiper, Actitis hypoleucos - regular visitor

Ruddy turnstone, Arenaria interpres - regular visitor

Sharp-tailed sandpiper, Calidris acuminata - vagrant

Sanderling, Calidris alba - vagrant

Curlew sandpiper, Calidris ferruginea - vagrant

Red-necked stint, Calidris ruficollis - vagrant

Red knot, Calidris canutus - vagrant

Great knot, Calidris tenuirostris - vagrant

Pin-tailed snipe, Gallinago stenura - vagrant

Grey-tailed tattler, Heteroscelus brevipes - vagrant

Bar-tailed godwit, Limosa lapponica - vagrant

Black-tailed godwit, Limosa limosa - vagrant

Little curlew, Numenius minutus - vagrant

Whimbrel, Numenius phaeopus - regular visitor

Common greenshank, Tringa nebularia - regular visitor

Common redshank, Tringa totanus - regular visitor

Red-necked phalarope, Phalaropus lobatus - vagrant

Recurvirostridae

Black-winged stilt, Himantopus himantopus leucocephalus - vagrant

Charadriidae

Greater sand plover, Charadrius leschenaultii - regular visitor

Oriental plover, Charadrius veredus - vagrant

Pacific golden plover, Pluvialis fulva - regular visitor

Grey plover, Pluvialis squatarola - vagrant

Glareolidae

Oriental pratincole, Glareola maldivarum - vagrant

Laridae

Common noddy, Anous stolidus - breeding

Lesser noddy, Anous tenuirostris - vagrant

White-winged tern, Chlidonias leucopterus - vagrant

White tern, Gygis alba - breeding

Bridled tern, Onychoprion anaethetus - vagrant

Sooty tern, Onychoprion fuscatus - breeding

Common tern, Sterna hirundo - vagrant

Lesser crested tern, Thalasseus bergii - vagrant

Greater crested tern, Thalasseus bengalensis - vagrant

Saunders's tern Sternula saundersi - vagrant

Columbidae

Christmas imperial pigeon, Ducula whartoni - introduced, extinct

Cuculidae

Large hawk-cuckoo, Hierococcyx sparverioides - vagrant

Oriental cuckoo, Cuculus saturatus - vagrant

Indian cuckoo, Cuculus micropterus - vagrant

Asian koel, Eudynamys scolopaceus - vagrant

Strigidae

Buffy fish owl, Ketupa ketupu - vagrant

Caprimulgidae

Nightjar species, Caprimulgus - vagrant

Apodidae

Pacific swift, Apus pacificus - vagrant

Edible-nest swiftlet, Collocalia fuciphaga - vagrant

White-throated needletail, Hirundapus caudacutus - vagrant

Halcyonidae

Collared kingfisher, Todiramphus chloris - vagrant

Meropidae

Rainbow bee-eater, Merops ornatus - vagrant

Coraciidae

Dollarbird, Eurystomus orientalis - vagrant

Motacillidae

Grey wagtail, Motacilla cinerea - vagrant

Yellow wagtail, Motacilla flava - vagrant

Passeridae

Java sparrow, Padda oryzivora - introduced, extinct

Ploceidae

Asian golden weaver, Ploceus hypoxanthus - introduced, extinct

Hirundinidae

Barn swallow, Hirundo rustica - regular visitor

Asian house martin, Delichon dasypus - vagrant

Zosteropidae

Christmas white-eye, Zosterops natalis - introduced, breeding

Turdidae

Christmas thrush, Turdus poliocephalus erythropleurus - introduced, extinct

Muscicapidae

Asian brown flycatcher, Muscicapa dauurica - vagrant

Blue-and-white flycatcher, Cyanoptila cyanomelana - vagrant

Sturnidae

Rosy starling, Pastor roseus - vagrant

Mammals

There are no native land mammals. Two species of rodent, the house mouse and black rat, have been introduced to the southern atoll but are absent from North Keeling. Rabbits were introduced but have become extinct. Two species of Asian deer, the Indian muntjac (Muntiacus muntjak), and Sambar (Cervus unicolor), were introduced but did not persist. Marine mammals recorded stranding on, or seen passing by, the islands include:

Sirenia

Dugong, Dugong dugon – seen in the lagoon of the southern atoll

Cetacea

Bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus – regularly seen

Common dolphin, Delphinus delphis – regularly seen

Pilot whale, Globicephala species

Humpback whale, Megaptera novaeangliae

Cuvier's beaked whale, Ziphius cavirostris

Sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus

Reptiles

Terrestrial reptiles include three geckos and a blind-snake, all of which may have been inadvertently transported to the islands by humans:

Gekkonidae

Mourning gecko, Lepidodactylus lugubris

Four-clawed gecko, Gehyra mutilata

House gecko, Hemidactylus frenatus

Typhlopidae

Blind snake, Typhlops braminus

Marine reptiles include:

Hydrophiidae

Yellow-bellied sea snake, Pelamis platurus

Banded sea krait, Laticauda colubrina

Chelonioidea

Green sea turtle, Chelonia mydas - breeding

Hawksbill sea turtle, Eretmochelys imbricata

Olive ridley sea turtle, Lepidochelys olivacea

Loggerhead sea turtle, Caretta caretta

Leatherback sea turtle, Dermochelys coriacea

Fish

Over 500 species of fish have been recorded around the islands.