2 results
Chapter Six - Habitat associations of birds in complex changing cultural landscapes
-
- By Shelley A. Hinsley, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, UK, Simon Gillings, British Trust for Ornithology
- Edited by Robert J. Fuller, British Trust for Ornithology, Norfolk
-
- Book:
- Birds and Habitat
- Published online:
- 05 December 2012
- Print publication:
- 08 November 2012, pp 150-176
-
- Chapter
- Export citation
-
Summary
Habitat is a key factor limiting the distribution of bird species, but how we define species habitat selection depends on the scale of the analysis and the structure of the environment (Chapter 1). In regions such as western Europe where the landscape is highly man-modified, the scale and configuration of habitat patches is usually markedly different from that in more natural landscapes, with a corresponding difference in how birds respond and in our perceptions of their habitat associations. In such historically fragmented and modified landscapes, species may have been forced to adapt to a wider range of habitats than is the case in less-modified landscapes (Chapter 3). This may have consequences for the extent to which many species in long-established cultural landscapes can be regarded as true habitat specialists.
This chapter discusses how birds use European cultural landscapes, taking Britain as an example. We first outline the processes that have operated within these landscapes to influence the pattern, availability and quality of habitat for birds. We then discuss approaches and constraints to classifying birds by their apparent habitat associations. Finally, we analyse patterns of habitat use at different scales for species widely considered as generalists and specialists of certain habitats, and assess the robustness of these classifications. Classically, specialist species are those whose survival and/or breeding performance depends on a relatively narrow resource base or whose impact or functional role within their environment is relatively narrow, whereas generalists utilise a wider range of resources or have wider or multiple functional roles (reviewed by Devictor et al., 2010). However, as discussed by Devictor et al. (2010), the use of these terms in practice has been complicated by numerous re-definitions and permutations (at multiple levels, from individuals through to populations, and across spatial scales) by many different authors. Recent work (Julliard et al., 2006; Devictor et al., 2008) has been successful in applying a particular definition of a species specialisation index in relation to responses to habitat fragmentation and disturbance, but this still required a priori definition of habitat types.
Chapter Fourteen - Temperate western European woodland as a dynamic environment for birds: a resource-based view
-
- By Robert J. Fuller, British Trust for Ornithology, Ken W. Smith, Hertfordshire, UK, Shelley A. Hinsley, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, UK
- Edited by Robert J. Fuller, British Trust for Ornithology, Norfolk
-
- Book:
- Birds and Habitat
- Published online:
- 05 December 2012
- Print publication:
- 08 November 2012, pp 352-380
-
- Chapter
- Export citation
-
Summary
Woodland bird communities are immensely variable in the number and composition of species and the overall density. Some of this variation is essentially biogeographic. For example, the species pool in most taxonomic and ecological avian groups increases from Ireland through to central Europe (Fuller et al., 2007a). At more local scales, variation is driven mainly by environmental attributes that influence the resources available and consequently determine fitness of individual birds within habitat patches (Holmes, 1990; Chapter 2).
The context for this chapter is long-established woodland in landscapes that have been heavily populated and modified by people for hundreds, even thousands, of years. These woods are predominantly broadleaved, often with a recently introduced coniferous element. Mountain and conifer forests lie outside the scope of the chapter, but for a discussion of northern conifer forests see Chapter 19. In western Europe, a long history of human-related disturbance has produced woodland that is far removed from any ‘natural’ state. Historical interactions between socio-economic processes and environmental factors have produced great diversity of woodland types of varying habitat quality for birds. Regional traditions, differences in management systems and markets, spatial variation in grazing pressure, even neglect, all contribute to this heterogeneity. Whilst some heavily wooded landscapes have persisted, much woodland exists merely as fragments in agricultural landscapes and its plant and animal communities are strongly affected by the surroundings (Chapters 4–6).