Protecting a heterogeneous landscape supports avian diversity across seasons on a Mediterranean island

Hadjikyriakou, Thomas G.; Rogers, Jacqueline B.; Kirschel, Alexander N.G.

Abstract

Conservation efforts commonly target the protection of specific threatened species and habitats, with the value of heterogeneous landscapes often overlooked. Areas with small fragments of habitat tend to receive little attention, but the overall habitat mosaic may support substantial biodiversity. In this work, we investigated seasonal bird–habitat associations on Akrotiri Peninsula, Cyprus, a well-known migration bottleneck site. The area comprises a heterogeneous landscape of diverse but fragmented habitats, with extensive wetlands rich in bird species. We mapped habitat types across the study area, and performed 388 point counts to record bird species richness and abundance in each season for 1 year. A total of 6255 individuals of 115 species were recorded. The study revealed that species were clustered within and around freshwater bodies, and taller and structurally more complex habitats. Seasonal patterns showed that winter and spring seasons supported greater richness of species and numbers of individuals compared to summer and autumn. Overall, we show that water availability and structural complexity of habitat types are positively correlated with both species richness and abundance. Our comprehensive seasonal bird–habitat association study in a protected, designated site, highlights the value of protecting a heterogeneous landscape in its entirety because of the overall diversity it can support across seasons.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Dec 4, 2021
• Online Publication Date: Jan 20, 2022
• Publication Date: 2022-04
• Deposit Date: Feb 24, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 21, 2023
• Journal: Journal of Ornithology
• Print ISSN: 2193-7192
• Electronic ISSN: 2193-7206
• Publisher: Springer
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 163
• Pages: 373–384
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-021-01953-2
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/8659271
• Additional Information: Received: 22 June 2021; Revised: 20 September 2021; Accepted: 4 December 2021; First Online: 20 January 2022; : ; : No conflict or competing interests.; : Not applicable.; : Not applicable.; : All authors consent for this publication.