NDLI: Response of avian diversity to habitat modification can be predicted from life-history traits and ecological attributes

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Ehlers Smith, Yvette C. Ehlers Smith, David A. Seymour, Colleen L. Thébault, Elisa van Veen, F. J. Frank
Copyright Year	2015
Abstract	Habitat conversion for agriculture is a major driver of global biodiversity loss, partly because of homogeneity within agri-ecosystems. Anthropogenic landscapes can also increase habitat heterogeneity and primary productivity, however, augmenting regional biodiversity, as species that exploit resources associated with human activities expand their ranges into novel ecological regions.We used birds as a model in the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere, South Africa, to ask whether agriculture can add habitat components and bird species complementary to those already present, and whether habitat variables and bird functional traits can be used to identify bird species most likely to respond to such habitat changes.We surveyed birds and measured habitat structure in 150 fixed-radius point counts each in natural habitat and mango orchards, and assessed relationships between habitat variables and bird functional traits.Despite mango orchards having greater vertical height structure because of tall (average 20 m) Casuarina windbreaks, they were missing the low-scrub (1–2 m woody cover) component of natural vegetation. We found that species whose life-history traits and ecological attributes were associated with structures missing from mango orchards were correspondingly absent from the orchards, which translated into the exclusion of 35 % of the bird species; bird assemblages within mango orchards were only a subset of those found in natural habitat.These findings suggest that knowledge of habitat structure, along with species’ functional traits can provide a predictive framework for effects that anthropogenic habitats may have on regional biodiversity, and allow management to reduce negative effects.
Starting Page	1225
Ending Page	1239
Page Count	15
File Format	PDF
ISSN	09212973
Journal	Landscape Ecology
Volume Number	30
Issue Number	7
e-ISSN	15729761
Language	English
Publisher	Springer Netherlands
Publisher Date	2015-02-17
Publisher Place	Dordrecht
Access Restriction	Subscribed
Subject Keyword	Agroecosystem Anthropogenic habitats Ecological attributes Functional diversity Functional traits Habitat heterogeneity Life history traits Habitat transformation RLQ analysis Landscape Ecology Plant Ecology Forestry Management Forestry Ecology Plant Sciences
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Geography, Planning and Development Ecology Nature and Landscape Conservation

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