Urbanisation and land-cover change affect functional, but not compositional turnover of bird communities

Abstract

Land-use and land-cover change strongly affect biodiversity patterns and are assumed to be growing threats in the future. Particularly increasing urbanisation may affect species turnover and functional composition of biological communities. This study aimed to assess the characteristics of land-cover change in a medium-sized urban municipality from 2011 to 2018, and the effects of urbanisation on avian species- and functional diversity. The study was performed in Trondheim (Norway), using local land-cover maps and GBIF bird species occurrence records. GLMMs were used to model species turnover as a function of urbanisation, and the probability of species appearance and disappearance based on urbanisation and species traits. The extent of bird species turnover within a municipality-wide 500 × 500m2 grid was not predicted by a changes in developed area, but the probability of disappearance and appearance of bird species varied with urbanisation and bird functional traits. Species associated with urban- or open areas showed a decreasing probability of disappearing and an increasing probability of appearing with increasing amount of developed area within grid cells. Similarly, granivorous species showed a decreasing probability of disappearing. Species feeding above ground-level showed positive responses to changes in land-cover. The probability of both appearance and disappearance, thus species turnover, increased with increasing longevity. Most functional groups respond negatively to increasing urbanisation, indicating a potential impoverishment of local avifauna with future land-cover modifications. Considering planned future land-cover changes within the municipality, the local avian communities are in danger of homogenisation. The recommendations for local management are to minimise conversion of vulnerable habitats, such as wetlands and woodlands, in particular if these are converted to developed area.

Where did they go? Understanding the effects of urbanization on bird diversity in a Brazilian coastal city

“…Urbanization impacts on bird populations and species diversity have been widely documented and discussed (Marzluff & Rodewald, 2008;Aronson et al, 2014;Snep et al, 2016;Petersen et al, 2022;Afrifa et al, 2023). Landcover changes directly in uence climatic conditions, food resources, introduce predation by pets or exotic species; urban development potentially affects animal behaviour, reproduction, survival, immigration and emigration, increasing or decreasing the viability of animal populations (Marzluff & Rodewald, 2008).…”

Bird Communities Across Different Levels of Human Settlement: A Comparative Analysis from Two Northern Amazonian Ecoregions

“…Urban ecosystems drive landcover change, which results in irreversible and persistent changes to the landscape (Akubia et al, 2020;Loram et al, 2007). Consequently, it leads to profound impacts on species diversity and distribution by altering, fragmenting, and causing habitat loss for many species (Marzluff, 2001;Melles et al, 2003;Petersen et al, 2022).…”