House sparrow (Passer domesticus) habitat use in urbanized landscapes

Abstract

The house sparrow (Passer domesticus) is showing population declines in many parts of Europe, with recent declines being particularly severe in urban areas. To date, relatively little is known about the species' habitat associations within urbanized landscapes. We report here an investigation of the habitat associations of house sparrows using a survey of 1223 stratified randomly selected 500 · 500-m squares within urbanized landscapes of the UK, defined as at least 25% 'human cover'. The densities of chirping male house sparrows and of all house sparrows were analysed separately to obtain insights into breeding habitat requirements and general habitat associations, respectively. Multi-model inference showed that residential areas (houses, flats), allotments (areas used for small-scale horticulture) and farm buildings were key predictors of house sparrow density and chirping male density. Separate analyses on landscapes of differing human cover showed similar results. Within residential areas, the increase of house sparrow density with habitat area (on a log scale) was approximately threefold greater when private gardens were present than when they were absent. The model predicted a rapid decline in house sparrow abundance when only a small area of private gardens is converted to continuous housing. Allotments and residential areas with gardens are likely to be under pressure due to increased demand for housing, specifically from the infilling of green space within urban areas. It would seem to be imperative that any action plan to protect urban house sparrow populations should include specific protection of such key habitats.

Space invaders: House Sparrow densities along three urban-agricultural landscapes

“…Similar patterns of habitat relationships have also been reported in this species' native European distribution (Mason 2006, Chamberlain et al 2007, Tratalos et al 2007, Murgui 2009, Murgui and Macías 2010, García-Rodríguez 2011, Šálek et al 2015, where variables associated with vegetation, but not specifically with urbanization, have been shown to drive their numbers. The declines of native House Sparrow populations have been recorded in both urban and agricultural areas, although the processes are seemingly different.…”

Bird community structure in natural and urbanized habitats along an altitudinal gradient in Pauri district (Garhwal Himalaya) of Uttarakhand state, India

“…P. domesticus was obtained as the dominant bird species in urbanized habitat in some other studies in USA and Finland (Blair 1996;Jokimaki et al 2002) also. However, recently it has been noted that there is decline in population of P. domesticus in urbanized habitats of many European countries (Siriwardena et al 1998;SummersSmith 2003;Peach et al 2006;Chamberlain et al 2007). Sighting of P. domesticus as a dominant species in the urbanized area of the study site is a good sign.…”

A longitudinal genetic survey identifies temporal shifts in the population structure of Dutch house sparrows

“…Although long being thought of as a thriving and ubiquitous urban species (Chace and Walsh, 2004), house sparrows (Passer domesticus) have suffered a dramatic decline in abundance and distribution across large parts of Europe (Hole et al, 2002;Chamberlain et al, 2007;De Laet and Summers-Smith, 2007;Inger et al, 2014; http://bd.eionet. europa.eu/article12/summary?period = 1&subject = A620) and evidence has mounted that these reductions vary considerably across locations and in their timing (De Laet and Summers-Smith, 2007;Shaw et al, 2008).…”

“…europa.eu/article12/summary?period = 1&subject = A620) and evidence has mounted that these reductions vary considerably across locations and in their timing (De Laet and Summers-Smith, 2007;Shaw et al, 2008). The rapid decline in sparrows has been partly attributed to agricultural intensification in rural areas and the loss of green spaces in urban areas, both resulting in reduced food availability (Chamberlain et al, 2007;De Laet and Summers-Smith, 2007). House sparrows are among the most sedentary of all temperate passerines, with juveniles dispersing in a 'stepping-stone' manner, postnatal dispersal distances being typically short (1.0-1.7 km; Anderson, 2006) and adult birds exhibiting high breeding site fidelity (Summers-Smith, 1988;Heij and Moeliker, 1990;Anderson, 2006).…”