Updated

Early Sunday afternoon, Bob Mansfield, Apple’s senior vice president of technologies, disappeared from the company’s Web site, his biography removed from its executive profiles page without explanation.

Now, we know why. Sort of. Mansfield is no longer a member of Apple’s executive team.

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“Bob is no longer going to be on Apple’s executive team, but will remain at Apple working on special projects reporting to [CEO] Tim [Cook],” company spokesman Steve Dowling told AllThingsD. He declined any further explanation, refusing to comment on the reasons behind Mansfield’s surprising move, whether he remains Apple’s SVP of Technologies or whether the company plans to appoint a new executive to that role.

The disappearance of Mansfield’s bio from Apple’s Web site was first reported by MacRumors.

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Mansfield, a longtime Apple exec announced his retirement from the company in June of 2012 only to return to it a few months later in a new, larger role following a big executive shakeup. He agreed to stay at Apple for an additional two years, serving as SVP of Technologies, a position charged with overseeing Apple’s wireless and semiconductor teams. Recently, he has been rumored to be working on wearable computing devices like the company’s mythical iWatch.

Read more tech news and reviews at AllThingsD.com.