Effects of habitat-patch size and patch isolation on the diversity of forest birds in the urban-forest mosaic of Durban, South Africa

Maseko, Mfundo S.T.; Zungu, Manqoba M.; Smith, David A. Ehlers; Smith, Yvette C. Ehlers; Downs, Colleen T.

doi:10.1007/s11252-020-00945-z

Cited by 51 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 66 publications

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“…Some relatively large raptors persist in urban areas of South Africa and likely have reduced home range sizes than conspecifics in non-urban areas (McPherson et al 2016a(McPherson et al , 2016bSumasgutner et al 2016b). A variety of land-use types exist within a city, each with distinct configurations (Ramalho and Hobbs 2012;Downs 2016a, 2016b;Alexander et al 2019aAlexander et al 2019bMaseko et al 2020). Green spaces are essential for most wildlife, such as raptors (Beninde et al 2015;McPherson et al 2019), and the provision of ecosystem services (Alberti et al 2003).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Generally, urban areas exhibit a gradient of effects on biodiversity, often highest at the most modified urban core (McDonnell et al 2009), although modern industrial cities expand in complex and dynamic ways characterised by sprawl developing in fractal patterns (Ramalho and Hobbs 2012), or are a mosaic of habitats, with some natural and green spaces interspersed (Alexander et al 2019a(Alexander et al , 2019b(Alexander et al , 2019cMaseko et al 2019Maseko et al , 2020. The diversity of indigenous species typically decreases with proximity to the urban core (Kark et al 2007;Reis et al 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Despite the general trend of degraded biological diversity, some native species benefit from cities, and conservation strategies can be applied in some areas (McKinney 2002;Marzluff 2017;Maseko et al 2019Maseko et al , 2020Zungu et al 2020aZungu et al , 2020b. For example, in South Africa, some residential estates are managed with the specific goal of conservation, catering for particular requirements of endangered species enclosed within the estate (Grey-Ross et al 2009;Alexander et al 2019aAlexander et al , 2019bAlexander et al , 2019c.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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South African raptors in urban landscapes: a review

McPherson

Sumasgutner

Downs

2021

Ostrich

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Globally, but especially in Africa, increasing human populations and anthropogenic land-use change are generally affecting diversity negatively. Urban environments in southern Africa typically comprise a mosaic landscape of anthropogenic infrastructure with some green spaces. These urban cities have a range of fauna that have persisted or increased in population density compared with areas that are more natural. We analysed the occurrence of diurnal and nocturnal raptors using South African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP2) data and reviewed literature. We found 66 raptor species occurred in South African cities. Thirty species had reporting frequencies greater than 10% in at least one of the 11 cities assessed, revealing impressive diversity of the raptor clade in South African cities. Five species were both abundant and widespread, occurring >10% in five or more cities each, of which three belong to the scavenger guild: Black-winged Kite Elanus caeruleus, African Fish Eagle Haliaeetus vocifer, Common Buzzard Buteo buteo vulpinus, Yellow-billed Kite Milvus aegyptius and Black Sparrowhawk Accipiter melanoleucus. However, only a few of these 66 raptors had been extensively studied in urban areas: the Black Sparrowhawk, African Crowned Eagle Stephanoaetus coronatus, Lanner Falcon Falco biarmicus and Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus. This lack of research is specifically severe, given that Africa is hosting a unique and diverse range of raptor species and that numbers and diversity of raptors have declined dramatically over the past decades across the continent. In fact, these four extensively studied species occurred in higher densities in urban areas than rural areas, which indicates that urban areas might create valuable opportunities for urban conservation, not least through public engagement. Rapaces sud-africains dans les paysages urbains: un bilanÀ l›échelle mondiale, mais surtout en Afrique, l›augmentation des populations humaines et les changements anthropiques d›utilisation des terres ont généralement un impact négatif sur la diversité. Les environnements urbains en Afrique australe comprennent généralement un paysage en mosaïque d›infrastructures anthropiques avec quelques espaces verts. Ces villes urbaines ont une diversité de faune qui a persisté ou a augmenté en densité de population par rapport aux zones plus naturelles. Nous avons analysé l›occurrence des rapaces diurnes et nocturnes à l›aide des données du South African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP2) et examiné la littérature. Nous avons trouvé 66 espèces de rapaces présentes dans les villes sud-africaines. Trente espèces avaient des fréquences de déclaration supérieures à 10% dans au moins l'une des 11 villes évaluées, révélant une diversité impressionnante du clade des rapaces dans les villes sud-africaines. Cinq espèces étaient à la fois abondantes et répandues, présentes> 10% dans cinq villes ou plus chacune, dont trois appartiennent à la guilde des charognards: l'Elanion blanc Elanus caeruleus, le Pygargue vocifer Haliaeetus vocifer, la Buse commune Bu...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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South African raptors in urban landscapes: a review

McPherson

Sumasgutner

Downs

2021

Ostrich

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“…Similarly, Ehlers showed patch size did not influence functional diversity of forest mammals in Coastal and Scarp forests in southern KwaZulu-Natal. By contrast, bothEhlers Smith, Si, Ehlers Smith, Kalle, et al (2018) andMaseko et al (2020) found avian functional diversity decreased with decreasing patch size in coastal forests in KwaZulu-Natal. They attributed the response of avian functional diversity to forest specialists being dependent upon large patches, with generalist species unaffected by reductions in patch size (Ehlers Smith,…”

mentioning

confidence: 84%

“…We anticipated forest type to be a predominant predictor of functional diversity, as was found for forest birds in the Eastern Cape (Leaver et al, 2019). Also, we hypothesized patch size to positively affect functional richness (García-Morales et al, 2016;Maseko et al, 2020). Lastly, we predicted species with a reduced dispersal capacity, inferred by wing loading, to be more vulnerable to reduced patch size and increased fragmentation as they are less equipped to commute large distances between forests.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 89%

Functional diversity and trait filtering of insectivorous bats relate to forest biogeography and fragmentation in South Africa

Moir

Richards²,

Rambau

et al. 2021

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim: Forest fragmentation is a major driver of biodiversity loss causing declines in species richness and functional diversity of biotic communities. Bats are essential components of ecosystems and are useful bio-indicators of habitat disturbance, yet the response and vulnerability of bats to fragmentation have been poorly studied in Africa. We aim to assess the effects of forest biogeographical history and fragmentation on functional diversity of bats and their functional traits.Location: Eastern Cape and southern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.Taxon: Insectivorous bats. Methods:We surveyed forest-utilizing bats to derive four functional diversity indices. Generalized linear models were used to assess the response of diversity indices to biogeographical history and fragmentation, represented by forest type and five landscape fragmentation metrics. RLQ and fourth-corner analysis were used to investigate the interaction of traits with fragmentation metrics and forest type. Results: Pondoland Scarp forests displayed high functional richness, while EasternCape Dune forests exhibited high functional divergence yet low functional richness and dispersion. Two fragmentation metrics affected functional diversity dynamically: edge density had a positive effect on functional evenness; and dispersion was negatively affected by river length through forests. Results showed stronger interactions of functional traits with forest type than fragmentation metrics, with filtering effects on body size and wing morphology. Main conclusions:The large-scale processes related to biogeographical history, and associated forest structure, are important determinants of functional richness, divergence and dispersion of insectivorous bat communities. Scarp forests showed the highest species and functional richness as they experienced less extreme climatic extinction filtering than Mistbelt forests during the Last Glacial Maximum, whereas the low diversity of Eastern Cape Dune forests results from their younger evolutionary history and homogenous vegetation structure. Little is known of the sensitivity of bats to habitat fragmentation in Africa: here, we show larger-sized insectivorous species; and species exhibiting low wing loading may be more vulnerable to fragmentation.

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Determining the critical recruitment needs for the declining population of Olea europaea subsp. africana (Mill.) P.S. Green in Free State, South Africa

Vukeya

Mokotjomela

Powrie

et al. 2023

Ecology and Evolution

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Olea europaea subsp. africana (Mill.) P.S. Green (medium-sized tree species known as "African wild olive"), provides important ecological goods and services for sustaining frugivores in the grassland biome in South Africa. We speculate that O. europaea subsp. africana's population has been declining due to habitat loss and exploitation for domestic benefits suggesting an unrecognized conservation threat. Therefore, the study aimed to investigate the anthropogenic conservation threats for O. europaea subsp. africana in the Free State, South Africa and to determine the potential importance of seed dispersal effectiveness in the restoration of the species in the study area. Overall, the results showed that 39% of the natural habitat range has been transformed by human-mediated activities. Agricultural activities accounted for 27%, while mining activities and human settlement accounted for 12%, of natural habitat loss. In support of the study predictions, seeds of O. europaea subsp. africana had significantly higher germination and germinated faster after passing through the mammal gut (i.e., 28% and 1.49 per week), compared to other seed treatments (i.e., over 39 weeks). However, there were no statistically significant differences between seed germination of the bird-ingested seeds, with intact fruits as the experimental control, although both were significantly greater than the de-pulped seeds. Potential seed dispersal distances by birds were relatively larger, ranging from 9.4 km to 53 km, than those of mammals (1.5 km-4.5 km). We propose that the O. europaea subsp. africana's habitat range may have been declining, and since it is a keystone plant species, we recommend that the complementary seed dispersal services by birds and mammals could be important for its recruitment and restoration in the degraded habitat.

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Effects of habitat-patch size and patch isolation on the diversity of forest birds in the urban-forest mosaic of Durban, South Africa

Cited by 51 publications

References 66 publications

South African raptors in urban landscapes: a review

South African raptors in urban landscapes: a review

Functional diversity and trait filtering of insectivorous bats relate to forest biogeography and fragmentation in South Africa

Determining the critical recruitment needs for the declining population of Olea europaea subsp. africana (Mill.) P.S. Green in Free State, South Africa

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