scholarly journals Neotropical Forest Bird Communities: A Comparison of Species Richness and Composition at Local and Regional Scales

The Condor ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 109 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
John G. Blake
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Geographic Distance ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Individual Species ◽  
Lowland Forest ◽  
Forest Bird ◽  
Neotropical Forest ◽  
Region I ◽  
The Family

Abstract Species richness and composition of Neotropical forest bird communities vary spatially at both large and small scales, but previous comparisons based on 100 ha plots have not replicated plots within a region. I sampled birds in two 100 ha plots in lowland forest of eastern Ecuador to better understand how species richness and composition vary over smaller spatial scales. Birds were sampled in February and April of 2002–2005 (only in February in 2005). Plots were approximately 1.5 km apart in predominantly terra firme forest. A total of 319 species (285 and 281 per plot) from 43 families were represented in ~16 000 detections per plot; number of species and detections per sample averaged approximately 185 and 2300, respectively. Numbers of species and detections per family were strikingly similar in the two plots, but numbers of detections of individual species often differed, likely in response to differences in habitat between the two plots. Species richness and composition were similar in many respects to comparable data from Ecuador, Peru, and French Guiana, but differed from those of Panama. Differences were most pronounced at the species level, less at the genus level, and least when comparisons were based on families. Differences among sites in South America were correlated with geographic distance at the species and genus levels, but not at the family level. Results illustrate the value of replicated plots within a region for understanding how species richness and composition can vary at small spatial scales, and highlight the importance of beta diversity for determining overall patterns of regional diversity.

scholarly journals Edge effects in the avifaunal community of riparian rain-forest tracts in Tropical North Queensland

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 280-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
Montague H. C. Neate-Clegg ◽  
Emily C. Morshuis ◽  
Cristina Banks-Leite
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Community Composition ◽  
Edge Effects ◽  
Rain Forest ◽  
Forest Edge ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Forest Bird ◽  
Resource Distributions ◽  
Detection Frequency ◽  
Open Canopy

AbstractMost evidence suggests anthropogenic edges negatively affect rain-forest bird communities but little has been done to test this in Australasia. In this study, avifaunal detection frequency, species richness and community composition were compared between the edge and interior and between flat and more complex-shaped edges of riparian rain-forest tracts in Tropical North Queensland. The detection frequency and richness of guilds based on diet, foraging strata and habitat specialism were also compared. This study detected 15.1% more birds at the rain-forest edge compared with the interior but no difference in species richness. Edge shape had no effect on detection frequency or richness. Many guilds (subcanopy, closed forest, frugivorous and insectivorous species) experienced increased detection frequency at the edge relative to the interior, but for some guilds this response was reduced (habitat generalists) or reversed (understorey and mixed-flock species) along complex edges. Overall community composition was affected by edge distance but not by edge shape. Edge habitat was shorter and had more open canopy than the interior, supporting habitat-based explanations for the observed avifaunal edge effects. These results suggest generally positive edge effects in Australian rain-forest bird communities, possibly reflecting local resource distributions or a disturbance-tolerant species pool.

On large-scale dynamics and community structure in forest birds: lessons from some eucalypt forests of southeastern Australia

1995 ◽  
Vol 350 (1334) ◽  
pp. 369-379 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Necessary Conditions ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Sympatric Species ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Individual Species ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Individual Bird ◽  
Southeastern Australia

Models of ecological communities, including coevolved patterns of resource use among sympatric species (for example, ‘resource partitioning’), are poor or inadequate representations of natural systems despite intense theoretical effort for many years. Some of these difficulties are due to a failure to recognize the necessary conditions for community patterns to develop, which are largely controlled by the dynamic characteristics of individual species. In continental bird communities — examples of which are considered here - these necessary conditions often will not be met owing to the mobility of most species. Here I document the degrees to which the large-scale dynamics (over hundreds of km) of individual bird species are expressed in community terms in five forest-habitat types throughout the year. These data demonstrate that continental bird communities are so dynamic that the conditions for the development of definite structure are unlikely to be met in either proximate or evolutionary time. The failure of community theories to account for and predict structure probably reflects too much concentration on mechanisms at inappropriate spatial scales.

scholarly journals Endangered lowland oak forest steppe remnants keep unique bird species richness in Central Hungary

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gábor Ónodi ◽  
Zoltán Botta-Dukát ◽  
Dániel Winkler ◽  
Tamás Rédei
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Hybrid Poplar ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Oak Forest ◽  
Native Forest ◽  
Pedunculate Oak ◽  
Forest Bird ◽  
Retention Forestry ◽  
Arable Fields ◽  
Forest Remnants

AbstractThe biodiversity of natural or semi-natural native, old oak woodlands have high conservation importance, especially in landscapes of monocultural forest plantations and arable fields. With a wider variety of microhabitats and foraging sources, such old oak forests can provide essential habitat for native forest bird communities. We conducted a study using bird point counts to compare the forest bird communities of old pedunculate oak (Quercus robur) remnants with native and non-native plantations in central Hungary in a landscape of mostly arable fields, settlements, and monocultural plantations. Avian surveys were carried out in old oak forest remnants, middle-aged oak, white poplar (Populus alba), hybrid poplar (Populus × euramericana), black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia), and pine (Pinus spp.) plantations. Fieldwork has been carried out in nine study sites, where all six habitat types were represented (with a few exceptions), to determine total abundance, species richness, Shannon–Wiener diversity, species evenness, dominant and indicator species, and guild abundances. We found that old oak forest remnants were the most diverse habitats among the studied forest types, while hybrid poplar and pine plantations exhibited the lowest avian biodiversity. The avian guilds most sensitive to the loss of old oak forest remnants were ground foragers, bark foragers, cavity-nesters, residents, and Mediterranean migratory birds. Native habitats were more diverse than non-native plantations. Our results suggest that it is important to conserve all remaining high biodiversity old oak stands and to avoid clear-cutting of monocultural plantations in favour of practices such as mixed-species plantations, longer rotation lengths, or retention forestry.

Clear-fell harvest impacts on biodiversity: past research and the search for harvest size thresholds

2006 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 1035-1046 ◽  
Author(s):  
S M Pawson ◽  
E G Brockerhoff ◽  
D A Norton ◽  
R K Didham
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Past Research ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Individual Species ◽  
Ecological Change ◽  
Erosion Processes ◽  
Clear Fell

Clear-fell harvesting has large aesthetic impacts and significantly alters ecosystem attributes at multiple spatial scales. Known abiotic changes include increased microclimatic variability, changes in regional water balance, and modified hydrological patterns that influence erosion processes. Biotic changes include increased species richness immediately post-clear-felling due to shifts in species composition resulting from changes in individual species abundance and colonization by disturbance-adapted or open-habitat species. Given the large ecological changes caused by clear-fell harvesting and the negative public perception of clear-felling, it is surprising that few studies have investigated whether reducing clear-fell harvest area may be a viable strategy to mitigate ecological change within individual clearcuts. Clear-fell size studies conducted to date rarely exceed a maximum harvest area of 10 ha, and biotic communities measured exhibit mixed responses with respect to species richness and other biodiversity attributes with increasing clear-fell size. Some postharvest ecological responses are nonlinear with respect to harvest area and suggest possible threshold sizes beyond which clear-fell impacts increase disproportionately to their size. Conceptual models of potential ecological thresholds in clear-fell harvest impacts are discussed, as is the need for rigorous empirical testing to ensure a solid foundation exists for forest harvesting guidelines.

scholarly journals Effects of environmental variation on the composition and dynamics of an arid-adapted Australian bird community

2015 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 74 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judy E. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Temporal Variability ◽  
Environmental Variability ◽  
Arid Zone ◽  
Climatic Variability ◽  
Bird Community ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Individual Species ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Variability ◽  
Severe Drought

Environmental variables influence the dynamics of bird communities. Australian arid-adapted bird communities must cope with particularly high levels of spatial and temporal variability, including inevitable but unpredictable periods of drought. Over four years, which included a severe drought and a period of above-average rainfall, I quantified the responses of a bird community in arid north-western New South Wales to regular seasonal and irregular climatic variation, especially rainfall, as well as spatial variation. I found pronounced changes in the abundance and composition of the avifauna that related to drought and, to a lesser extent, seasonal variability. Overall bird abundance and species richness declined during the drought but the magnitude and direction of population fluctuations of resident, nomadic and migratory species, different feeding groups, and individual species were not consistent. Avian densities and species richness in the study area were higher in mesic habitats associated with drainage lines than in run-off areas. The study demonstrated the importance of local habitat heterogeneity. The asynchronous species responses to a fluctuating environment indicated that drought is likely to have a differential effect on resources and that individual species respond differently to environmental variability. Effective land management and conservation of Australian arid-adapted bird communities requires an understanding of their spatial and temporal variability and dynamics at both local and regional level. A proper understanding of the variability and dynamics of the avifauna is especially important as climate change is predicted to exacerbate the climatic variability and unpredictability of the arid zone in future years.

scholarly journals Longleaf Pine Restoration: Implications for Landscape-Level Effects on Bird Communities in the Lower Gulf Coastal Plain

2003 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-121 ◽  
Author(s):  
James W. Tucker ◽  
Geoffrey E. Hill ◽  
Nicholas R. Holler
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Longleaf Pine ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Pinus Palustris ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Selective Logging ◽  
Neotropical Migrants ◽  
Individual Species ◽  
Riparian Habitats

Abstract The longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) ecosystem of the southeastern United States is among the most heavily degraded of all ecosystems. Less than 1% of the original longleaf pine forests remain as old-growth stands. Eglin Air Force Base (Eglin) in northwest Florida contains the largest remaining extent of longleaf pine, but much of this habitat has been degraded through fire suppression, selective logging, and planting off-site species of pines. We examined the distribution of bird species among habitats during spring and fall 1994–1995 to assess the influence of large-scale habitat restoration on bird communities across the landscape. During both spring and fall, species richness and relative abundance of neotropical migrants were greatest in oak hammocks and riparian habitats. During spring, the abundance of resident species was greatest in barrier island scrub and flatwoods, but species richness of residents also was high in oak hammocks. During fall, both species richness and abundance of residents were greatest in oak hammocks and flatwoods. Analyses of abundance for individual species (both neotropical migrants and residents) suggested that each habitat examined was important for ≥1 species. An analysis examining the importance of habitats for conservation found that oak hammocks and riparian habitats were important for species of high management concern, but burned sandhills along with oak hammocks and riparian habitats were very important for species of the greatest management concern. Our results suggest that habitat modifications resulting from restoration of the longleaf pine ecosystem will benefit many species of management concern. Bird species negatively affected by habitat modifications for longleaf pine restoration were abundant in other habitats. South. J. Appl. For. 27(2):107–121.

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