The natural forest gaps maintenance diversity of understory birds in Mae Sa-Kog Ma Biosphere Reserve, northern Thailand

Siri S, Ponpituk Y, Safoowong M, Marod D, Duengkae P. 2019. The natural forest gaps maintenance diversity of understory birds in Mae Sa-Kog Ma Biosphere Reserve, northern Thailand. Biodiversitas 20: 181-189. We compared the species composition and feeding guilds between under closed canopies and forest gaps in the low-elevation montane evergreen forest in Mae Sa-Kog Ma Biosphere Reserve. Monthly mist netting was used to capture birds from January 2015 to December 2017. In total, 958 individual birds belonging to 65 species were captured over 25,920 sampling hours. Of the total number of birds, 475 were from 51 species (Shannon-Wiener index: H' 2.974) under closed canopies and 483 were from 47 species (H' 2.985) in forest gaps. The number of bird species in gaps increased rapidly and constantly through 1 year following gap creation. Forest gap localities contained 48% of the understory birds in the area. Foliage–gleaning insectivores were the dominant bird feeding guild in both areas. Some species such as Erythrura prasina is a nomadic bird were found on first year of the forest gap only. Overall, we found that the forest gaps created by natural disturbances in the Mae Sa-Kog Ma Biosphere Reserve had no negative impact on the diversity of understory bird communities. The natural forest gap are created by intermediate disturbance promotes a relatively high biodiversity of birds in the ecosystem.

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Comparing morphological traits of legs of understory birds inhabiting forest areas with closed canopies and forest gaps

Biodiversitas Journal of Biological Diversity ◽

10.13057/biodiv/d210326 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 21 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Supalak Siri ◽

Yuwadee Ponpituk ◽

Mongkol Safoowong ◽

Wimonmart Nuipakdee ◽

Dokrak Marod ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Morphological Traits ◽

Large Scale ◽

Environmental Changes ◽

Classification Tree ◽

Bird Species ◽

Evergreen Forest ◽

Forest Disturbances ◽

Forest Gaps ◽

Understory Birds ◽

Important Trait

Abstract. Siri S, Ponpituk Y, Safoowong M, Nuipakdee W, Marod D, Duangkae P. 2020. Comparing morphological traits of legs of understory birds inhabiting forest areas with closed canopies and forest gaps. Biodiversitas 21: 1041-1048. Bird species exhibit different adaptations depending on their habitats. The morphological traits of each species represent adaptations that are impacted by environmental changes. We conducted a 3-year study from 2015 to 2017 to compare the leg morphology of understory birds that occur under closed canopies and in forest gaps in a hill evergreen forest in northern Thailand, with gaps in the natural forest representing forest disturbances. We captured 64 bird species over the study period and measured 11 leg morphological features for each individual. Ground-foraging birds were generally long-legged and climbing birds generally short-legged. Understory species living in dense forest areas were significantly associated with long claws, toes, and tibiae, whereas species occurring in gaps and open areas tended to have shorter leg structures. Results from classification tree analysis revealed that digit claw length is the most important trait for predicting which habitat a species is most likely to occupy. Our findings suggest that understory birds with long leg structures that live under closed canopies are most vulnerable to forest disturbances or the conversion of forests to large-scale open areas.

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Status of birds in Agasthyamalai Hills, Western Ghats, Kerala, India

Journal of Threatened Taxa ◽

10.11609/jott.3259.10.1.11166-11184 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 11166 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Madhumita Panigrahi ◽

V. J. Jins

Keyword(s):

Elevation Gradient ◽

Bird Species ◽

Biosphere Reserve ◽

Abundant Species ◽

High Elevation ◽

Iucn Red List ◽

Evergreen Forest ◽

The Status ◽

Conservation Plan ◽

Kerala State

The present study focused on the status of birds in two wildlife sanctuaries, Neyyar and Peppara, located in Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve, Kerala State, India. A total of 197 bird species representing 16 orders and 57 families are reported from the study area. According to the IUCN Red List, one Endangered, two Vulnerable, and nine Near Threatened bird species occur in the landscape. Black Bulbul was the most abundant species with highest density, followed by Yellow-browed Bulbul and Crimson-backed Sunbird. Despite many bird species being broadly distributed across elevations, most endemic species occur or breed at elevations above 1,200m, dominated by southern hilltop evergreen forest. This highlights the prominence of these high altitude species and their habitats. A customized conservation plan is needed for the whole elevation gradient with greater emphasis on high elevation forest.

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Bird communities in a degraded forest biodiversity hotspot of East Africa

Biodiversity and Conservation ◽

10.1007/s10531-021-02190-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Moses Mulwa ◽

Mike Teucher ◽

Werner Ulrich ◽

Jan Christian Habel

Keyword(s):

Tropical Forests ◽

Agricultural Land ◽

Bird Species ◽

Bird Communities ◽

Natural Forest ◽

Tree Plantations ◽

Agricultural Fields ◽

Degraded Forest ◽

Forest Patches ◽

Small Forest

AbstractTropical forests suffer severe habitat destruction. Thus, tropical forests frequently consist today of only a few small remnants that are often embedded within a matrix of agricultural fields and tree plantations. Forest specialist species have experienced severe population declines under these circumstances. We studied bird communities based on census plots set up in a near-natural forest block, as well as degraded forest patches, tree plantations, and agricultural fields, across the Taita Hills in southern Kenya. We classified each bird species according its ecology and behavior. We quantified the land cover and landscape configuration around each census plot. Typical forest species were mainly observed in the near-natural forest block, and to a lower extent in degraded forest patches. Plantations were almost devoid of birds. Bird communities of small forest fragments were more similar to that of agricultural land than the near-natural forest block. Most frugivorous, insectivorous and nectarivorous birds occurred in forest habitats, while granivorous bird species dominated the bird communities of agricultural land. The surrounding landscape had a marginal impact on bird species composition at local sites. Our study showed that the preservation of near-natural cloud forest, including small forest patches, is essential for the conservation of forest-dependent species, and that plantations do not serve as surrogate habitats.

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The impact of Sosnowsky’s Hogweed on feeding guilds of birds

Journal of Ornithology ◽

10.1007/s10336-021-01898-6 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Emilia Grzędzicka ◽

Jiří Reif

Keyword(s):

Negative Impact ◽

Bird Community ◽

Plant Invasions ◽

Bird Communities ◽

Feeding Guilds ◽

Guild Structure ◽

Feeding Guild ◽

Potential Impact ◽

Underlying Mechanisms ◽

The Impact

AbstractPlant invasions alter bird community composition worldwide, but the underlying mechanisms still require exploration. The investigation of feeding guild structure of bird communities can be informative in respect to the potential impact of invasion features on the availability of food for birds. For this purpose, we focused on determining the influence of the invasive Sosnowsky’s Hogweed Heracleum sosnowskyi on the abundance of birds from various feeding guilds. In spring and summer 2019, birds were counted three times on 52 pairs of sites (control + Heracleum) in southern Poland, at various stages of Sosnowsky’s Hogweed development (i.e. sprouting, full growth and flowering, all corresponding to respective bird counts). We have shown that the presence of invader negatively affected the abundance of birds from all feeding guilds. However, a closer examination of the invaded sites uncovered that responses of particular guilds differed in respect to development stages expressed by a set of characteristics of the invader. Ground and herb insectivores were more common on plots with a higher number of the invader, while the abundance of bush and tree insectivores was negatively correlated with hogweeds’ height. Granivores were not affected by the invader’s features, while the abundance of omnivores was negatively related to the number of flowering hogweeds. Besides showing the general negative impact of the invader on different feeding guilds, our research has shown that certain aspects of Sosnowsky’s Hogweed invasion may support or depress occurrence of different birds on invaded plots. Knowledge of these aspects may facilitate our capacity for coping with challenges the invasive plants put in front of bird conservationists.

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Effect of exotic tree plantation on floristic composition and phytodiversity of Rema-Kalenga wildlife sanctuary, Bangladesh

Jahangirnagar University Journal of Biological Sciences ◽

10.3329/jujbs.v3i2.28284 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 3 (2) ◽

pp. 33-47

Author(s):

Gazi Mosharof Hossain ◽

ABM Enayet Hossain

Keyword(s):

Plant Species ◽

Negative Impact ◽

Diversity Index ◽

Vascular Plant ◽

Floristic Composition ◽

Natural Forest ◽

Wildlife Sanctuary ◽

Tree Plantation ◽

Exotic Tree ◽

Index Value

Effect of exotic tree plantation on floristic composition and phytodiversity status of Rema-Kalenga wildlife sanctuary of Bangladesh was studied. A total of 309 vascular plant species under 245 genera belonging to 83 families were found to constitute the vascular flora of the studied area. The maximum number of species (298) with the highest Shannon-Weiner diversity index value (3.882±0.090) was recorded from natural forest, which was followed by 194 and 165 plant species with 3.441±0.205 and 3.398±0.103 diversity index values recorded from Tectona and Acacia plantation sites respectively. The minimum number of plant species (142) with the lowest diversity index value (2.999±0.152) was recorded from Eucalyptus plantation site. The collected data on the selected forest sites of Rema-Kalenga wildlife sanctuary showed the trends of gradual decrease in floristic composition and phytodivesity status of three plantation sites (Tectona to Acacia to Eucalyptus) in respect to natural forest, which indicated that exotic tree plantations might have negative impact on floristic composition and phytodiversity of this semi-tropical forest area and the fast-growing exotic tree plantation of Acacia and Eucalyptus should be avoided for sustainable development of Rema-Kalenga wildlife sanctuary.Jahangirnagar University J. Biol. Sci. 3(2): 33-47, 2014 (December)

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Effect of Farming and Rainfall on the Species Diversity, Population Density and Community Structure of Birds Breeding in the Kalahari Woodland, NE Namibia

Zoodiversity ◽

10.15407/zoo2021.06.451 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 55 (6) ◽

pp. 451-458

Author(s):

G. Kopij

Keyword(s):

Community Structure ◽

Species Diversity ◽

Bird Species ◽

Diversity Indices ◽

Annual Rainfall ◽

Feeding Guilds ◽

Line Transect ◽

Population Densities ◽

Feeding Guild ◽

Turtle Dove

The line transect method has been employed to assess species diversity, population densities and community structure of birds breeding in a mosaic of Kalahari Woodland and farmland, NE Namibia. The transect, 4.5 km long, was surveyed in 2014 and 2015. The total annual rainfall in 2014 was much higher than in 2015 (427 mm vs. 262 mm). In total, 40 breeding species in 2014, and 46 in 2015 were recorded. Six species were dominant in 2014 (Cape Turtle Dove, Laughing Dove, Emerald-spotted Dove, Blue Waxbill, and White-browed Scrub Robin) and only three species in 2015 (Cape Turtle Dove and Blue Waxbill and Yellow-fronted Canary). Although the cumulative dominance in 2014 almost doubled that in 2015, the Community Index in both years was almost identical. Also diversity indices and evenness index were very similar in both years compared. Granivorous birds were the most numerous feeding guild. Their contribution was similar in 2014 and 2015 (46.7 % vs. 43.4 %). Two other feeding guilds, insectivores and frugivores, comprised together more than 50 % in both years. The number of bird species and species diversity were not influenced by the differential rainfall. However, contrary to expectations, population densities of most bird species (at least the more numerous ones) were higher in the year with lower than in the year with higher rainfall. The number of species and species diversity was similar in the farmland and in neighbouring Kalahari Woodland in a pristine stage. However, population densities of most species were lower in the farmland than in the pristine woodland.

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Conservation status of mammals and birds in southwestern Australian forests. I. Is there evidence of direct links between forestry practices and species decline and extinction?

Pacific Conservation Biology ◽

10.1071/pc980296 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 4 (4) ◽

pp. 296 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

M. C. Calver ◽

J. Dell

Keyword(s):

Negative Impact ◽

Conservation Status ◽

Bird Species ◽

Fire Regimes ◽

Personal Identification ◽

Base Line ◽

Mammal Species ◽

Current Conservation ◽

Forestry Practices ◽

European Settlement

Sixteen mammal species and 22 bird species whose distributions extended into southwestern Australian forests before European settlement have been listed as threatened at some time in Commonwealth legislation, State legislation, or action plans of Environment Australia or its predecessors. Confident assessment of the causes of conservation status is hampered by poor base-line data, few studies of putative impacts and a preponderance of circumstantial or anecdotal rather than experimental evidence. However, introduced foxes were Implicated In the current conservation status of 62% of the mammal species recognized, while 44% of them were negatively impacted by feral cats, 44% by agricultural clearing and 44% by changed fire regimes. Forestry practices were impllcated in the conservation status of only one mammal species. For the bird species recognized, changed fire regimes had the greatest negative impact (45% affected), agricultural clearing affected 41%, draining of wetlands affected 32% and grazing by livestock affected 22%. Forestry practices were not directly implicated in the conservation status of any bird species. While these results suggest that forestry has had minimal direct impact on the mammals and birds of the forests, the conclusion should be treated cautiously because of the poor data. While awaiting a rigorous evaluation, we argue for a strong precautionary approach to forestry in the region. With proper forest management and sound sylvicultural [sic] treatment there is no reason why there should not be built up on the wreckage of the once splendid forests of Western Australia tended forests which will yield for all time 100 cubic feet of timber per acre per year. Lane-Poole (1920). There are many reasons why Australian environmentalists would like to end logging in native forests. The preservation of wilderness, aesthetics, an almost religious identification with old growth forests and the conservation of forest wildlife figure importantly in environmental efforts to restrict logging. Wilderness and a personal identification with trees and undisturbed forests are fundamentally incompatible with logging. Recher (1996).

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Forest Gap Size Alters the Functional Diversity of Soil Nematode Communities in Alpine Forest Ecosystems

Forests ◽

10.3390/f10090806 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 806

Author(s):

Shen ◽

Yang ◽

Zhang ◽

Xu ◽

Zhang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Functional Diversity ◽

Forest Ecosystems ◽

Nematode Community ◽

Soil Nematode ◽

Gap Size ◽

Forest Gap ◽

Forest Gaps ◽

Alpine Forest ◽

Soil Nematode Community ◽

Closed Canopy

Changes in the microenvironment driven by forest gaps have profound effects on soil nutrient cycling and litter decomposition processes in alpine forest ecosystems. However, it is unclear whether a similar forest gap effect occurs in the soil decomposer community. A field experiment was conducted in an alpine forest to investigate the composition and structure of the soil nematode community among four treatments, including under a closed canopy and in small (<10 m in diameter), medium (10‒15 m in diameter), and large (15‒20 m in diameter) gaps. A total of 92,787 individuals and 27 species (genera level) of soil nematode were extracted by elutriation and sugar centrifugation, respectively. Filenchus was the most abundant dominant taxa and represented 24.27%‒37.51% of the soil nematodes in the four treatments. Compared to the closed canopy, the forest gaps did not affect the composition, abundance, or species diversity of the soil nematode community but significantly affected the functional diversity of the soil nematode community. The maturity indices (MI, ∑MI, and MI2‒5) of the soil nematode community in the closed canopy were significantly lower than those in the forest gaps. Moreover, the proportion of plant parasitic index and maturity index (PPI/MI) values of the closed canopy and small gaps were significantly higher than those of the medium and large gaps. Our results suggest that the forest gap size substantially alters the functional diversity of soil nematodes in the debris food web, and changes in soil nematode community structure due to gap formation may have profound effects on soil biogeochemical processes in alpine forests.

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