Article
Environmental Studies
Maria Tereza Ribeiro Alves, Valderli Jorge Piontekowski, Erika Buscardo, Marcos Antonio Pedlowski, Edson Eyji Sano, Eraldo Aparecido Trondoli Matricardi
Summary: Tropical forests in the Brazilian Amazon have been facing intense human pressure in recent decades, primarily due to conversion into agricultural or pasture lands. Different settlement spatial designs have varying impacts on deforestation, with dendritic design showing better protection of primary forests and fishbone design aiding in connecting forest patches.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Thomas Schmitt, Werner Ulrich, Andjela Delic, Mike Teucher, Jan Christian Habel
Summary: Species community structures in East African drylands are highly sensitive to both natural and anthropogenic impacts, with seasonality playing a significant role in resource availability and species composition. Farmland and savannah support distinct butterfly communities, with human activities buffering the seasonal fluctuations in detectable species abundances. Strict habitat associations are weaker in the savannah region, suggesting a more generalized species distribution compared to the farmland area.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Henry S. Pollock, Judith D. Toms, Corey E. Tarwater, Thomas J. Benson, James R. Karr, Jeffrey D. Brawn
Summary: A 44-year population study of a Neotropical understory bird assemblage in a protected forest reserve in central Panama revealed that among 57 resident species analyzed, only 2 showed an increase in abundance while 40 species exhibited declines, with severe losses in estimated abundance. These declines were independent of ecological factors or phylogenetic affiliation, indicating widespread and alarming trends of tropical bird declines in intact forests. Understanding the underlying ecological mechanisms driving these declines is identified as a pressing conservation priority.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Kathryn Baragwanath, Ella Bayi, Nilesh Shinde
Summary: In this paper, the authors investigate whether collective property rights, in the form of indigenous territories (ITs), result in higher rates of secondary forest growth in previously deforested areas. The study finds strong evidence that ITs with secure tenure not only reduce deforestation inside their lands but also lead to higher secondary forest growth in previously deforested areas.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Stefano Spiteri Avilla, Kathryn E. Sieving, Marina Anciaes, Cintia Cornelius
Summary: This study found that environmental changes caused by habitat fragmentation and urbanization are driving biodiversity loss in the Neotropics. Differences in behavioral and morphological traits were observed between populations from urban fragmented forests and continuous preserved forests, potentially due to the environmental changes in the urban landscape. However, observed variations cannot be solely attributed to evolutionary processes, suggesting that other factors may also play a role in the phenotypic differences observed.
Article
Ornithology
Clarisse Caroline de Oliveira E. Silva, Luciana Vieira de Paiva, Mauro Pichorim, Lemuel Oliveira Leite, Joao Batista Pinho, Raphael Igor Dias, Daniel Cunha Passos, Leonardo Fernandes Franca
Summary: Studies suggest that bird survival rates in different tropical regions are similar, but this research often ignores species in semi-arid tropical environments. Survival in seasonally dry environments may be lower than in constantly wet areas, but the asymmetry between young and adult mortality may favor adult survival regardless of climatic conditions. To fill this knowledge gap, the hypothesis that bird survival is similar between seasonally dry and constantly wet Neotropical environments was tested. The results suggest that bird survival is regionally similar in Neotropical forests, despite climatic variation.
Article
Ecology
Sally Deborah Pereira da Silva, Suane Bastos dos Santos, Paulo Cezar Gomes Pereira, Marcio Roberto da Silva Melo, Fernando Coelho Eugenio
Summary: The study reveals that in the municipality of Dom Eliseu, forest fragments are mainly composed of very small fragments smaller than 5 hectares, indicating a high degree of forest fragmentation in this landscape.
ECOLOGICAL ENGINEERING
(2021)
Article
Forestry
Julia Perez Cabral, Deborah Faria, Jose Carlos Morante-Filho
Summary: Biodiversity-friendly agricultural systems, such as cocoa agroforestry, play a crucial role in maintaining native species and providing habitats for various bird groups. The study found that landscapes with more forest cover and fewer cattle pastures support higher richness and abundance of frugivorous birds in cocoa agroforests, while an increase in cattle pasture negatively impacts all bird groups evaluated. Local vegetation structure, such as canopy closure and number of cocoa trees, also influences the abundance of insectivorous and non-forest bird species in cocoa agroforestry systems.
FOREST ECOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Cindy C. P. Cosset, James J. Gilroy, Suzanne Tomassi, Suzan Benedick, Luke Nelson, Patrick G. Cannon, Simone Messina, Mike Kaputa, Marte Fandrem, Ramon Soto Madrid, Anna Lello-Smith, Lucas Pavan, Bethany King, Rose Fogliano, Tanith B. Hackney, Ezron Gerald, Jessey Yee-Wei Chai, Emilie Cros, Yi Yao Chong, Chen Hong Tan, Rayzigerson R. Chai, Chuan Ong Cheoh, David P. Edwards
Summary: Widespread selective logging in tropical forests can cause structural damage and shifts in species composition. A study in Malaysian Borneo examined how selective logging impacts local movements of understory avian species, finding altered movement patterns post-logging likely due to increased understory density. Conservation, body mass, foraging guild, logging sensitivity, and trophic position did not relate to the magnitude of movement change, suggesting that post-logging species persistence may rely on movement flexibility.
BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Fernando Cesar Goncalves Bonfim, Pavel Dodonov, Eliana Cazetta
Summary: This study evaluated the impact of landscape composition and configuration on taxonomic and functional diversity of frugivorous birds in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Results showed that landscape composition was more important than configuration in explaining diversity, highlighting the need to maintain high habitat amount for these birds.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Angela M. Vargas-Daza, Juan F. Betancurt-Grisales, Gabriel J. Castano-Villa, Francisco E. Fonturbel
Summary: Old and mature secondary forests are similar to mature secondary forests in terms of species richness and abundance, but differ significantly in species composition. Old secondary forests play a valuable role in protecting species highly specialized to mature forests and those with decreasing populations.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Nelida R. Villasenor, Ricardo Truffello, Sonia Reyes-Paecke
Summary: Research conducted in the capital city of Santiago de Chile shows that local shrub and woody vegetation cover positively impact native bird species richness, while high vegetation density in the surrounding landscape and proximity to urban boundaries also increase bird richness.
URBAN FORESTRY & URBAN GREENING
(2021)
Article
Ornithology
Kristina L. Paxton, Jennifer R. Smetzer, Patrick J. Hart, Marti J. Anderson, Eben H. Paxton
Summary: Habitat loss and fragmentation pose the greatest threats to ecosystems, making it crucial to understand how animals adapt to landscape changes. This study focuses on four endemic Hawaiian forest bird species and reveals that landscape configuration significantly affects their movement and space use patterns. In fragmented landscapes, these bird species tend to occupy a single forest patch and exhibit limited long-distance movements compared to conspecifics in continuous landscapes.
JOURNAL OF AVIAN BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Carlos Eduardo Ortiz-Yusty, Juan Luis Parra, Andrea Morales-Rozo, Roberto Munguia-Steyer, Joan Gaston Zamora Abrego
Summary: This study examined habitat occupancy patterns of six bird species in a fragmented Andean landscape in Colombia. The use of surface-based metrics was found to better explain the occupancy patterns of five of the six species, going beyond their affinity for specific cover types. Surface-based metrics can be an alternative method for evaluating species response to landscape heterogeneity.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Divya Vasudev, Varun R. Goswami, Madan K. Oli
Summary: The study proposes an approach to quantify connectivity by combining occupancy modeling with field data, allowing for a clear assessment of the impacts of the matrix on connectivity while considering imperfect detection of animal movement. The research demonstrates that distance to forests and ruggedness predominantly shape elephant connectivity patterns, highlighting the importance of understanding these factors for effective conservation efforts.
BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Crinan Jarrett, Luke L. Powell, Heather McDevitt, Barbara Helm, Andreanna J. Welch
Article
Ornithology
James R. Wright, Luke L. Powell, Stephen N. Matthews, Christopher M. Tonra
Article
Ecology
Luke L. Powell, Elizabeth M. Ames, James R. Wright, Jason Matthiopoulos, Peter P. Marra
Summary: Research indicates that there is interspecific competition between Yellow Warblers and American Redstarts, with significant impacts on the migration and return of the latter. Territorial overlap in adult male American Redstarts is negatively correlated with Yellow Warblers, with lower overlap rates associated with higher annual return rates.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Kathleen K. E. Manson, Jenna P. B. McDermott, Luke L. Powell, Darroch M. Whitaker, Ian G. Warkentin
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Crinan Jarrett, Thomas B. Smith, Tabe T. R. Claire, Diogo F. Ferreira, Melanie Tchoumbou, Malange N. F. Elikwo, Jared Wolfe, Kristin Brzeski, Andreanna J. Welch, Rachid Hanna, Luke L. Powell
Summary: The conversion of forests to agriculture in the Afrotropics is leading to declines in sensitive rainforest taxa, such as understorey birds. Cocoa farms in Africa may provide habitat for biodiversity, but the suitability for vertebrate fauna and the impact of farm management on animal communities is not well understood. A study in Southern Cameroon found that sunny cocoa farms were less able to support sensitive bird guilds compared to shaded farms in forested landscapes, indicating that certain ecological and dietary guilds are disproportionately affected by land-use change.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Brian S. Evans, Luke L. Powell, Dean W. Demarest, Sinead M. Borchert, Russell S. Greenberg
Summary: The study revealed a significant decline in the Rusty Blackbird population, primarily inhabiting the Boreal forest. By utilizing citizen science efforts in the southeastern United States, environmental factors influencing the occurrence of Rusty Blackbirds were determined, with large hotspots identified in specific regions.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Robert E. Wilson, Steven M. Matsuoka, Luke L. Powell, James A. Johnson, Dean W. Demarest, Diana Stralberg, Sarah A. Sonsthagen
Summary: The genomic structure of the rusty blackbird population showed patterns influenced by historical vicariance during the last glacial maximum and contemporary forces, restricting dispersal among populations and potentially limiting their ability to respond to rapid environmental changes.
Article
Ornithology
Crinan Jarrett, Luke L. Powell, Tabe T. Regine Claire, Melanie Tchoumbou, Barbara Helm
Summary: Through capturing and monitoring Wood Warblers in Cameroon over two winters, it was found that the moulting process of the birds started on December 26 and completed on February 25, lasting 61 days. The birds encountered relatively stable climatic conditions for moulting in Cameroon, and the moulting period occurred during the peak of the dry season with high humidity.
JOURNAL OF ORNITHOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Ornithology
Luke L. Powell, Adam Metallo, Crinan Jarrett, Nathan W. Cooper, Peter P. Marra, Scott R. McWilliams, Ulf Bauchinger, Bryant C. Dossman
Summary: A noninvasive aluminum muscle meter device was developed to estimate the size of pectoral muscles in birds, and a durable plastic 3D-printed version was created for wider availability. The device showed repeatability among users, correlation with visual scoring systems, and outperformed traditional systems in predicting body condition indices. The precision of the 3D-scanning hardware used to create the device made it as useful as the original aluminum version, but more cost-effective and accessible.
JOURNAL OF FIELD ORNITHOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Steven C. Miller, Joris H. Wiethase, Amancio Motove Etingue, Elaine Franklin, Maximilliano Fero, Jared D. Wolfe, Mary K. Gonder, Luke L. Powell
Summary: This study investigated the potential factors influencing avian understory community composition along a newly constructed road on Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea. Results showed that elevation was the most significant factor influencing the composition of avian communities, with low elevation avian understory insectivores suggested as focal species for future conservation efforts. The findings emphasize the importance of conserving both upland and lowland elevations for protecting the diverse segments of the bird community.
Article
Ornithology
Cody M. Kent, Kyu Min Huh, Sarah Chieko Hunter, Kathryn Judson, Luke L. Powell, Thomas W. Sherry
Summary: Empirical studies in the past have focused on simple communities, making experimental tests of species interactions in complex systems challenging. High dietary overlap during scarce resource periods increases the potential negative impacts of interspecific competition.
Article
Ecology
Joseph A. Tobias, Catherine Sheard, Alex L. Pigot, Adam J. M. Devenish, Jingyi Yang, Ferran Sayol, Montague H. C. Neate-Clegg, Nico Alioravainen, Thomas L. Weeks, Robert A. Barber, Patrick A. Walkden, Hannah E. A. MacGregor, Samuel E. I. Jones, Claire Vincent, Anna G. Phillips, Nicola M. Marples, Flavia A. Montano-Centellas, Victor Leandro-Silva, Santiago Claramunt, Bianca Darski, Benjamin G. Freeman, Tom P. Bregman, Christopher R. Cooney, Emma C. Hughes, Elliot J. R. Capp, Zoe K. Varley, Nicholas R. Friedman, Heiko Korntheuer, Andrea Corrales-Vargas, Christopher H. Trisos, Brian C. Weeks, Dagmar M. Hanz, Till Topfer, Gustavo A. Bravo, Vladimir Remes, Larissa Nowak, Lincoln S. Carneiro, Amilkar J. Moncada R., Beata Matysiokova, Daniel T. Baldassarre, Alejandra Martinez-Salinas, Jared D. Wolfe, Philip M. Chapman, Benjamin G. Daly, Marjorie C. Sorensen, Alexander Neu, Michael A. Ford, Rebekah J. Mayhew, Luis Fabio Silveira, David J. Kelly, Nathaniel N. D. Annorbah, Henry S. Pollock, Ada M. Grabowska-Zhang, Jay P. McEntee, Juan Carlos T. Gonzalez, Camila G. Meneses, Marcia C. Munoz, Luke L. Powell, Gabriel A. Jamie, Thomas J. Matthews, Oscar Johnson, Guilherme R. R. Brito, Kristof Zyskowski, Ross Crates, Michael G. Harvey, Maura Jurado Zevallos, Peter A. Hosner, Tom Bradfer-Lawrence, James M. Maley, F. Gary Stiles, Hevana S. Lima, Kaiya L. Provost, Moses Chibesa, Mmatjie Mashao, Jeffrey T. Howard, Edson Mlamba, Marcus A. H. Chua, Bicheng Li, M. Isabel Gomez, Natalia C. Garcia, Martin Packert, Jerome Fuchs, Jarome R. Ali, Elizabeth P. Derryberry, Monica L. Carlson, Rolly C. Urriza, Kristin E. Brzeski, Dewi M. Prawiradilaga, Matt J. Rayner, Eliot T. Miller, Rauri C. K. Bowie, Rene-Marie Lafontaine, R. Paul Scofield, Yingqiang Lou, Lankani Somarathna, Denis Lepage, Marshall Illif, Eike Lena Neuschulz, Mathias Templin, D. Matthias Dehling, Jacob C. Cooper, Olivier S. G. Pauwels, Kangkuso Analuddin, Jon Fjeldsa, Nathalie Seddon, Paul R. Sweet, Fabrice A. J. DeClerck, Luciano N. Naka, Jeffrey D. Brawn, Alexandre Aleixo, Katrin Bohning-Gaese, Carsten Rahbek, Susanne A. Fritz, Gavin H. Thomas, Matthias Schleuning
Summary: Functional traits provide a quantitative framework for theories in evolutionary biology, ecology, and ecosystem science. The AVONET dataset contains comprehensive functional trait data for all bird species, allowing integration with other datasets and providing a global template for testing hypotheses and exploring the origins, structure, and functioning of biodiversity.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
James R. Wright, James A. Johnson, Erin Bayne, Luke L. Powell, Carol R. Foss, Jeremiah C. Kennedy, Peter P. Marra
Summary: Understanding the movement patterns of migratory birds throughout the annual cycle can help identify potential population threats. This study used high-resolution GPS tags to track Rusty Blackbirds across different breeding populations, revealing variations in migratory connectivity and habitat use differences. The results suggest conservation efforts should target specific regions and habitats during nonbreeding periods, with a focus on stopover regions as important as wintering grounds.
AVIAN CONSERVATION AND ECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Philip C. Stouffer, Vitek Jirinec, Cameron L. Rutt, Richard O. Bierregaard, Angelica Hernandez-Palma, Erik I. Johnson, Stephen R. Midway, Luke L. Powell, Jared D. Wolfe, Thomas E. Lovejoy
Summary: Research has shown that bird populations in the Amazon rainforest are decreasing without the presence of deforestation or other human-induced changes. Today's forest fragments and second growth are more impoverished compared to historical abundance, and goals for bird community recovery in second growth must acknowledge that modern bird communities will inevitably differ from those of over 35 years ago.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Sarah C. Davidson, Gil Bohrer, Eliezer Gurarie, Scott LaPoint, Peter J. Mahoney, Natalie T. Boelman, Jan U. H. Eitel, Laura R. Prugh, Lee A. Vierling, Jyoti Jennewein, Emma Grier, Ophelie Couriot, Allicia P. Kelly, Arjan J. H. Meddens, Ruth Y. Oliver, Roland Kays, Martin Wikelski, Tomas Aarvak, Joshua T. Ackerman, Jose A. Alves, Erin Bayne, Bryan Bedrosian, Jerrold L. Belant, Andrew M. Berdahl, Alicia M. Berlin, Dominique Berteaux, Joel Bety, Dmitrijs Boiko, Travis L. Booms, Bridget L. Borg, Stan Boutin, W. Sean Boyd, Kane Brides, Stephen Brown, Victor N. Bulyuk, Kurt K. Burnham, David Cabot, Michael Casazza, Katherine Christie, Erica H. Craig, Shanti E. Davis, Tracy Davison, Dominic Demma, Christopher R. DeSorbo, Andrew Dixon, Robert Domenech, Gotz Eichhorn, Kyle Elliott, Joseph R. Evenson, Klaus-Michael Exo, Steven H. Ferguson, Wolfgang Fiedler, Aaron Fisk, Jerome Fort, Alastair Franke, Mark R. Fuller, Stefan Garthe, Gilles Gauthier, Grant Gilchrist, Petr Glazov, Carrie E. Gray, David Gremillet, Larry Griffin, Michael T. Hallworth, Autumn-Lynn Harrison, Holly L. Hennin, J. Mark Hipfner, James Hodson, James A. Johnson, Kyle Joly, Kimberly Jones, Todd E. Katzner, Jeff W. Kidd, Elly C. Knight, Michael N. Kochert, Andrea Koelzsch, Helmut Kruckenberg, Benjamin J. Lagasse, Sandra Lai, Jean-Francois Lamarre, Richard B. Lanctot, Nicholas C. Larter, A. David M. Latham, Christopher J. Latty, James P. Lawler, Don-Jean Leandri-Breton, Hansoo Lee, Stephen B. Lewis, Oliver P. Love, Jesper Madsen, Mark Maftei, Mark L. Mallory, Buck Mangipane, Mikhail Y. Markovets, Peter P. Marra, Rebecca McGuire, Carol L. McIntyre, Emily A. McKinnon, Tricia A. Miller, Sander Moonen, Tong Mu, Gerhard J. D. M. Muskens, Janet Ng, Kerry L. Nicholson, Ingar Jostein Oien, Cory Overton, Patricia A. Owen, Allison Patterson, Aevar Petersen, Ivan Pokrovsky, Luke L. Powell, Rui Prieto, Petra Quillfeldt, Jennie Rausch, Kelsey Russell, Sarah T. Saalfeld, Hans Schekkerman, Joel A. Schmutz, Philipp Schwemmer, Dale R. Seip, Adam Shreading, Monica A. Silva, Brian W. Smith, Fletcher Smith, Jeff P. Smith, Katherine R. S. Snell, Aleksandr Sokolov, Vasiliy Sokolov, Diana V. Solovyeva, Mathew S. Sorum, Grigori Tertitski, J. F. Therrien, Kasper Thorup, T. Lee Tibbitts, Ingrid Tulp, Brian D. Uher-Koch, Rob S. A. van Bemmelen, Steven Van Wilgenburg, Andrew L. Von Duyke, Jesse L. Watson, Bryan D. Watts, Judy A. Williams, Matthew T. Wilson, James R. Wright, Michael A. Yates, David J. Yurkowski, Ramunas Zydelis, Mark Hebblewhite