Get 20M+ Full-Text Papers For Less Than $1.50/day. Start a 14-Day Trial for You or Your Team.

Learn More →

Comparative avifaunal richness and diversity in invasive Acacia dealbata patches and adjacent montane grasslands

Comparative avifaunal richness and diversity in invasive Acacia dealbata patches and adjacent... Invasive alien species are regarded as the second greatest threat to biodiversity globally. Yet, at a local scale their effects may vary, underlying the requirement for more local-scale studies across taxa and settings. Here we consider the effects of an alien invasive tree (Acacia dealbata, 5–8 m tall) on avifaunal numbers, richness and diversity in A. dealbata patches of three sizes relative to adjacent montane grasslands. Analysis of historical aerial photographs showed that A. dealbata first occurred in the area in the late 1930s/early 1940s and has continued to spread, despite some efforts by the landowner to keep it in check. It now covers approximately 11% of the site. This has provided habitat for a number of bird species more characteristic of wooded vegetation types. The number, richness and diversity of birds were greater in A. dealbata patches than the adjacent grasslands of equivalent size. These measures increased with increasing patch size, but more rapidly for A. dealbata patches than grassland ones. Only six of the 48 species of birds recorded were common between the two vegetation types. The most common feeding guild in the A. dealbata patches was insectivores, whereas in the grasslands it was omnivores. Although the invasion of A. dealbata has added to the habitat diversity of the area, thereby facilitating increased avifaunal diversity, if it continues to spread, then the populations and perhaps richness of grassland birds are likely to be negatively affected. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png African Zoology Taylor & Francis

Comparative avifaunal richness and diversity in invasive Acacia dealbata patches and adjacent montane grasslands

Seath, Jessica; Shackleton, Charlie
African Zoology , Volume 57 (1): 8 – Jan 2, 2022
Download PDF

Comparative avifaunal richness and diversity in invasive Acacia dealbata patches and adjacent montane grasslands

Abstract

Invasive alien species are regarded as the second greatest threat to biodiversity globally. Yet, at a local scale their effects may vary, underlying the requirement for more local-scale studies across taxa and settings. Here we consider the effects of an alien invasive tree (Acacia dealbata, 5–8 m tall) on avifaunal numbers, richness and diversity in A. dealbata patches of three sizes relative to adjacent montane grasslands. Analysis of historical aerial photographs showed that A....
Loading next page...
 
/lp/taylor-francis/comparative-avifaunal-richness-and-diversity-in-invasive-acacia-l0OCbxgxbF
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Copyright
© 2022 Zoological Society of Southern Africa
ISSN
2224-073X
eISSN
1562-7020
DOI
10.1080/15627020.2022.2047104
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Invasive alien species are regarded as the second greatest threat to biodiversity globally. Yet, at a local scale their effects may vary, underlying the requirement for more local-scale studies across taxa and settings. Here we consider the effects of an alien invasive tree (Acacia dealbata, 5–8 m tall) on avifaunal numbers, richness and diversity in A. dealbata patches of three sizes relative to adjacent montane grasslands. Analysis of historical aerial photographs showed that A. dealbata first occurred in the area in the late 1930s/early 1940s and has continued to spread, despite some efforts by the landowner to keep it in check. It now covers approximately 11% of the site. This has provided habitat for a number of bird species more characteristic of wooded vegetation types. The number, richness and diversity of birds were greater in A. dealbata patches than the adjacent grasslands of equivalent size. These measures increased with increasing patch size, but more rapidly for A. dealbata patches than grassland ones. Only six of the 48 species of birds recorded were common between the two vegetation types. The most common feeding guild in the A. dealbata patches was insectivores, whereas in the grasslands it was omnivores. Although the invasion of A. dealbata has added to the habitat diversity of the area, thereby facilitating increased avifaunal diversity, if it continues to spread, then the populations and perhaps richness of grassland birds are likely to be negatively affected.

Journal

African Zoology – Taylor & Francis

Published: Jan 2, 2022

Keywords: feeding guild; grassland; invasion; patch size; species diversity; species richness size

References

  • The impact of commercial afforestation on bird populations in Mpumalanga province, South Africa – insights from bird-atlas data
  • Decadal declines in bird abundance and diversity in urban riparian zones
  • Diversions in avian communities following woody plant invasions in a pine barrens ecosystem
  • Silver Wattle
  • Effects of invasive alien plants on birds: some examples from North America
  • Rich sister, poor cousin: plant diversity and endemism in the Great Winterberg-Amatholes (Greater Escarpment, Eastern Cape
  • Prominent role of invasive species in avian biodiversity loss
  • Assessing the values and impacts of invasive alien plants on the livelihoods of rural land-users on the Agulhas Plain, South Africa
  • Australian wattle species in the Drakensberg region of South Africa – an invasive alien or a natural resource?
  • Avian assemblages in native Acacia and alien Prosopis drainage line woodland in the Kalahari, South Africa
  • ArcGIS Desktop: Release 10
  • Effects of alien woody plant invasion on the birds of Mountain Fynbos in the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve
  • Fruit quantity of invasive shrubs predicts the abundance of common native avian frugivores in central Pennsylvania
  • Abundance and correlates of the Acacia dealbata invasion in the northern Eastern Cape, South Africa
  • A spatio-temporal landscape perspective on Acacia dealbata invasions and broader land-use and cover changes in the northern Eastern Cape
  • Impacts of an invasive tree across trophic levels: species richness, community composition and resident species traits
  • Invasive, naturalized and casual alien plants in southern Africa: a summary based on the Southern African Plant Invaders Atlas (SAPIA)
  • A habitat-based point-count protocol for terrestrial birds, emphasizing Washington and Oregon
  • Management implications of bird responses to variation in non-native/native tree ratios within central European forest stands
  • Invasive alien trees and water resources in South Africa: case studies of the costs and benefits of management
  • Livelihood benefits and costs of an invasive alien tree (Acacia dealbata) to rural communities in the Eastern cape, South Africa
  • Invasive plant architecture alters trophic interactions by changing predator abundance and behavior
  • Invasive species, ecosystem services and human well-being
  • Grassland bird response to vegetation structural heterogeneity and clearing of invasive bramble
  • Naturalization and invasion of alien plants: concepts and definitions
  • Invasive alien plants in South Africa: how well do we understand the ecological impacts?
  • Stutterheim climate
  • The other sides of invasive alien plants of India-With special reference to medicinal values
  • Impacts of invasive plants on resident animals across ecosystems, taxa, and feeding types: a global assessment
  • Assessing the effects of invasive alien species on rural livelihoods: case examples and a framework from South Africa
  • Explaining people’s perceptions of invasive alien species: a conceptual framework
  • Responses of the Serengeti avifauna to long-term change in the environment
  • Can wetlands maintained for human use also help conserve biodiversity? Landscape-scale patterns of bird use of wetlands in an agricultural landscape in north India
  • National-scale strategic approaches for managing introduced plants: insights from Australian acacias in South Africa
  • Ecological impacts of invasive alien plants: a meta-analysis of their effects on species, communities and ecosystems
  • An assessment of the impacts of invasive Australian wattle species on grazing provision and livestock production in South Africa