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Elliot Noe E, Innes J, Barnes A, Joshi C, Clarkson BD. Habitat provision is a major driver of native bird communities in restored urban forests. J Anim Ecol 2022; 91:1444-1457. [PMID: 35396865 PMCID: PMC9541441 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Urbanization, and the drastic loss of habitat it entails, poses a major threat to global avian biodiversity. Ecological restoration of urban forests is therefore increasingly vital for native bird conservation, but control of invasive predators may also be needed to sustain native bird populations in cities where species invasions have been particularly severe. We evaluated restoration success by investigating changes in native bird communities along a restoration chronosequence of 25 restored urban forests representing 72 years of forest development, which we compared to two target reference systems and a control system. We hypothesized that total species richness and relative abundance of native forest birds would increase with the age of restoration planting. We further hypothesized that relative abundance of rats, possums and cats would negatively impact native birds, while amount of native forest in the surrounding landscape would have a positive effect. We used structural equation modelling (SEM) to investigate the relative influence of forest structure (complexity index, tree height, canopy openness, basal area, species richness and density), landscape attributes (patch area, perimeter length, landscape composition within three buffer zones, distance to the nearest road and water source) and invasive mammalian predator indices of relative abundance on total species richness and relative abundance of native forest birds. Species richness increased with age of restoration planting, with community composition progressing towards that found in target reference systems. SEM revealed that years restored was a direct driver of bird species richness but an indirect driver of abundance, which was directly driven by canopy openness. Contrary to our predictions, invasive mammals had no significant effect on native bird species richness or abundance. Our results demonstrate that provision and improvement of habitat quantity and quality through restoration is the vital first step to re‐establishing native forest bird communities in cities.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Elliot Noe
- University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand
| | - J Innes
- Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research, Private Bag 3127, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand
| | - A Barnes
- University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand
| | - C Joshi
- University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand
| | - B D Clarkson
- University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton, 3240, New Zealand
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Haslem A, Clarke RH, Holland GJ, Radford JQ, Stewart A, Bennett AF. Local management or wider context: What determines the value of farm revegetation plantings for birds? J Appl Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Angie Haslem
- Department of Ecology, Environment and Evolution Research Centre for Future Landscapes La Trobe University Bundoora VIC Australia
| | - Rohan H. Clarke
- School of Biological Sciences Monash University Clayton VIC Australia
| | | | - James Q. Radford
- Department of Ecology, Environment and Evolution Research Centre for Future Landscapes La Trobe University Bundoora VIC Australia
| | - Alistair Stewart
- Department of Environment, Parks and Water Security Alice Springs NT Australia
| | - Andrew F. Bennett
- Department of Ecology, Environment and Evolution Research Centre for Future Landscapes La Trobe University Bundoora VIC Australia
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Belder DJ, Pierson JC, Ikin K, Lindenmayer DB. Revegetation and reproduction: do restoration plantings in agricultural landscapes support breeding populations of woodland birds? Oecologia 2020; 192:865-878. [PMID: 32025896 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-020-04611-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2019] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Restoration plantings are frequently occupied by native wildlife, but little is known about how planting attributes influence breeding by, and persistence of, fauna populations. We monitored breeding success of woodland birds in restoration plantings in a fragmented agricultural landscape in south-eastern Australia. We documented nest fate and daily nest survival (DSR) in plantings and remnant woodland sites. We analysed the influence on breeding success of patch attributes (size, shape, type) compared to other potentially influential predictors such as nest-site and microhabitat variables. We found that, in general, patch attributes did not play a significant role in determining breeding success for woodland birds. However, we examined a subset of species of conservation concern, and found higher DSR for these species in restoration plantings than in similarly sized woodland remnants. We also found negative effects of patch size and linearity on DSR in species of conservation concern. The primary cause of nest failure was predation (91%). We used camera trap imagery to identify the most common nest predators in our study sites: native predatory bird species, and the introduced red fox (Vulpes vulpes). Our findings are further evidence of the value of restoration plantings and small habitat patches for bird populations in fragmented agricultural landscapes. We recommend controlling for foxes to maximise the likelihood that restoration plantings and other woodland patches in Australia support breeding populations of woodland birds. More broadly, our study highlights the importance of taking a detailed, population-oriented approach to understanding factors that influence habitat suitability for fauna of conservation concern.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donna J Belder
- Fenner School of Environment and Society, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia. .,National Environmental Science Program Threatened Species Recovery Hub, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia.
| | - Jennifer C Pierson
- Fenner School of Environment and Society, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia.,ACT Parks and Conservation Service, Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate, ACT Government, Canberra, ACT, 2602, Australia
| | - Karen Ikin
- Fenner School of Environment and Society, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
| | - David B Lindenmayer
- Fenner School of Environment and Society, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia.,National Environmental Science Program Threatened Species Recovery Hub, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia.,Sustainable Farms, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, 2601, Australia
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Hale R, Mac Nally R, Blumstein DT, Swearer SE. Evaluating where and how habitat restoration is undertaken for animals. Restor Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.12958] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Robin Hale
- School of BioSciences The University of Melbourne Parkville Victoria 3010 Australia
| | - Ralph Mac Nally
- Institute for Applied Ecology The University of Canberra ACT 2617 Australia
| | - Daniel T. Blumstein
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles CA, U.S.A
| | - Stephen E. Swearer
- School of BioSciences The University of Melbourne Parkville Victoria 3010 Australia
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Belder DJ, Pierson JC, Ikin K, Lindenmayer DB. Beyond pattern to process: current themes and future directions for the conservation of woodland birds through restoration plantings. WILDLIFE RESEARCH 2018. [DOI: 10.1071/wr17156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Habitat loss as a result of land conversion for agriculture is a leading cause of global biodiversity loss and altered ecosystem processes. Restoration plantings are an increasingly common strategy to address habitat loss in fragmented agricultural landscapes. However, the capacity of restoration plantings to support reproducing populations of native plants and animals is rarely measured or monitored. This review focuses on avifaunal response to revegetation in Australian temperate woodlands, one of the world’s most heavily altered biomes. Woodland birds are a species assemblage of conservation concern, but only limited research to date has gone beyond pattern data and occupancy trends to examine whether they persist and breed in restoration plantings. Moreover, habitat quality and resource availability, including food, nesting sites and adequate protection from predation, remain largely unquantified. Several studies have found that some bird species, including species of conservation concern, will preferentially occupy restoration plantings relative to remnant woodland patches. However, detailed empirical research to verify long-term population growth, colonisation and extinction dynamics is lacking. If restoration plantings are preferentially occupied but fail to provide sufficient quality habitat for woodland birds to form breeding populations, they may act as ecological traps, exacerbating population declines. Monitoring breeding success and site fidelity are under-utilised pathways to understanding which, if any, bird species are being supported by restoration plantings in the long term. There has been limited research on these topics internationally, and almost none in Australian temperate woodland systems. Key knowledge gaps centre on provision of food resources, formation of optimal foraging patterns, nest-predation levels and the prevalence of primary predators, the role of brood parasitism, and the effects of patch size and isolation on resource availability and population dynamics in a restoration context. To ensure that restoration plantings benefit woodland birds and are cost-effective as conservation strategies, the knowledge gaps identified by this review should be investigated as priorities in future research.
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Fenolio DB, Niemiller ML, Gluesenkamp AG, McKee AM, Taylor SJ. New Distributional Records of the Stygobitic Crayfish Cambarus cryptodytes (Decapoda: Cambaridae) in the Floridan Aquifer System of Southwestern Georgia. SOUTHEAST NAT 2017. [DOI: 10.1656/058.016.0205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Danté B. Fenolio
- Department of Conservation and Research, San Antonio Zoo, San Antonio, TX 78212
| | - Matthew L. Niemiller
- Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois Urbana—Champaign, Champaign, IL 61820
| | - Andrew G. Gluesenkamp
- Department of Conservation and Research, San Antonio Zoo, San Antonio, TX 78212
- Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, 4200 Smith School Road, Austin, TX 78744
| | - Anna M. McKee
- U.S. Geological Survey, South Atlantic Water Science Center, Norcross, GA 30093
| | - Steven J. Taylor
- Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois Urbana—Champaign, Champaign, IL 61820
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Mortelliti A, Ikin K, Tulloch AI, Cunningham R, Stein J, Michael D, Lindenmayer DB. Surviving with a resident despot: do revegetated patches act as refuges from the effects of the noisy miner (Manorina melanocephala) in a highly fragmented landscape? DIVERS DISTRIB 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.12444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Alessio Mortelliti
- Fenner School of Environment and Society; Australian Research Council Centre for Environmental Decisions; National Environmental Research Program; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT 0200 Australia
- Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Conservation Biology; University of Maine; 5755 Nutting Hall Orono ME USA
| | - Karen Ikin
- Fenner School of Environment and Society; Australian Research Council Centre for Environmental Decisions; National Environmental Research Program; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT 0200 Australia
| | - Ayesha I.T. Tulloch
- Fenner School of Environment and Society; Australian Research Council Centre for Environmental Decisions; National Environmental Research Program; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT 0200 Australia
| | - Ross Cunningham
- Fenner School of Environment and Society; Australian Research Council Centre for Environmental Decisions; National Environmental Research Program; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT 0200 Australia
| | - John Stein
- Fenner School of Environment and Society; Australian Research Council Centre for Environmental Decisions; National Environmental Research Program; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT 0200 Australia
| | - Damian Michael
- Fenner School of Environment and Society; Australian Research Council Centre for Environmental Decisions; National Environmental Research Program; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT 0200 Australia
| | - David B. Lindenmayer
- Fenner School of Environment and Society; Australian Research Council Centre for Environmental Decisions; National Environmental Research Program; The Australian National University; Canberra ACT 0200 Australia
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Hale R, Reich P, Johnson M, Hansen BD, Lake PS, Thomson JR, Mac Nally R. Bird responses to riparian management of degraded lowland streams in southeastern Australia. Restor Ecol 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.12158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Robin Hale
- School of Biological Sciences; Monash University; Melbourne Victoria 3800 Australia
| | - Paul Reich
- School of Biological Sciences; Monash University; Melbourne Victoria 3800 Australia
- Department of Environment and Primary Industries; Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research; 123 Brown Street Heidelberg Victoria 3084 Australia
| | - Matthew Johnson
- School of Biological Sciences; Monash University; Melbourne Victoria 3800 Australia
- Environmental Protection Agency Victoria; 200 Victoria Street, Carlton Melbourne Victoria 3053 Australia
| | - Birgita D. Hansen
- Faculty of Science; Federation University Australia; Ballarat Victoria 3353 Australia
| | - Phillip S. Lake
- School of Biological Sciences; Monash University; Melbourne Victoria 3800 Australia
| | - James R. Thomson
- Institute for Applied Ecology; The University of Canberra; Canberra ACT 2617 Australia
| | - Ralph Mac Nally
- Institute for Applied Ecology; The University of Canberra; Canberra ACT 2617 Australia
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Lindenmayer DB, Northrop-Mackie AR, Montague-Drake R, Crane M, Michael D, Okada S, Gibbons P. Not all kinds of revegetation are created equal: revegetation type influences bird assemblages in threatened Australian woodland ecosystems. PLoS One 2012; 7:e34527. [PMID: 22493698 PMCID: PMC3320884 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0034527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2011] [Accepted: 03/01/2012] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The value for biodiversity of large intact areas of native vegetation is well established. The biodiversity value of regrowth vegetation is also increasingly recognised worldwide. However, there can be different kinds of revegetation that have different origins. Are there differences in the richness and composition of biotic communities in different kinds of revegetation? The answer remains unknown or poorly known in many ecosystems. We examined the conservation value of different kinds of revegetation through a comparative study of birds in 193 sites surveyed over ten years in four growth types located in semi-cleared agricultural areas of south-eastern Australia. These growth types were resprout regrowth, seedling regrowth, plantings, and old growth. Our investigation produced several key findings: (1) Marked differences in the bird assemblages of plantings, resprout regrowth, seedling regrowth, and old growth. (2) Differences in the number of species detected significantly more often in the different growth types; 29 species for plantings, 25 for seedling regrowth, 20 for resprout regrowth, and 15 for old growth. (3) Many bird species of conservation concern were significantly more often recorded in resprout regrowth, seedling regrowth or plantings but no species of conservation concern were recorded most often in old growth. We suggest that differences in bird occurrence among different growth types are likely to be strongly associated with growth-type differences in stand structural complexity.Our findings suggest a range of vegetation growth types are likely to be required in a given farmland area to support the diverse array of bird species that have the potential to occur in Australian temperate woodland ecosystems. Our results also highlight the inherent conservation value of regrowth woodland and suggest that current policies which allow it to be cleared or thinned need to be carefully re-examined.
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Affiliation(s)
- David B Lindenmayer
- Fenner School of Environment and Society, ARC Centre of Excellence for Environmental Decisions, and National Environment Research Program, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
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Selwood K, Mac Nally R, Thomson JR. Native bird breeding in a chronosequence of revegetated sites. Oecologia 2008; 159:435-46. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-008-1221-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2008] [Accepted: 10/22/2008] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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