Raptor breeding sites indicate high taxonomic and functional diversities of wintering birds in urban ecosystems

Natsukawa, Haruki

doi:10.1016/j.ufug.2021.127066

Cited by 9 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…Historical data collected in different years by different projects are surely a valuable but often overlooked source of information, available for the evaluation of the conservation status of species, communities, and ecosystems [ 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ]. Beyond the assessment of population dynamic of each bird species, which is essential to define species-specific conservation priorities and actions, birds represent valuable ecological indicators that can potentially provide useful information about the overall biodiversity and ecosystem processes [ 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ]. Changes in species assemblages can be driven by species-specific responses to environmental perturbations (either natural or anthropic), and identifying which factors cause the observed changes is crucial to mitigate the impact of these perturbations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Species Traits Drive Long-Term Population Trends of Common Breeding Birds in Northern Italy

Tirozzi

Orioli

Dondina

et al. 2021

Animals

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Long-term population trends are considerable sources of information to set wildlife conservation priorities and to evaluate the performance of management actions. In addition, trends observed in functional groups (e.g., trophic guilds) can provide the foundation to test specific hypotheses about the drivers of the observed population dynamics. The aims of this study were to assess population trends of breeding birds in Lombardy (N Italy) from 1992 to 2019 and to explore the relationships between trends and species sharing similar ecological and life history traits. Trends were quantified and tested for significance by weighted linear regression models and using yearly population indices (median and 95% confidence interval) predicted through generalized additive models. Results showed that 45% of the species increased, 24% decreased, and 31% showed non-significant trends. Life history traits analyses revealed a general decrease of migrants, of species with short incubation period and of species with high annual fecundity. Ecological traits analyses showed that plant-eaters and species feeding on invertebrates, farmland birds, and ground-nesters declined, while woodland birds increased. Further studies should focus on investigation of the relationship between long-term trends and species traits at large spatial scales, and on quantifying the effects of specific drivers across multiple functional groups.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Species Traits Drive Long-Term Population Trends of Common Breeding Birds in Northern Italy

Tirozzi

Orioli

Dondina

et al. 2021

Animals

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“…To date, only two studies have evaluated the usefulness of raptors as conservation surrogates for biodiversity in urban ecosystems. In one study, biodiversity was estimated by the richness of breeding birds 18 , employed as “background taxa” (the taxonomic group expected to benefit from the conservation of the surrogate species, following 10 ), whereas the other study focused on wintering birds as background taxa 19 . In these assessments, there was a direct predator–prey relationship between the biodiversity surrogate (a bird-eating predator) and the background taxa (breeding or wintering birds).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Raptor breeding sites indicate high plant biodiversity in urban ecosystems

Natsukawa

Yuasa

Komuro³

2021

Sci Rep

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Preserving biodiversity in urban ecosystems has become an urgent conservation priority, given the rapid upsurge in global urbanization. As woody plants play essential ecological roles and provide psychological benefits to human city dwellers, their preservation is of particular interest to conservation scientists. However, considering that extensive censuses of woody plants are resource-intensive, a key accomplishment is to find reliable conservation proxies that can be quickly used to locate biologically diverse areas. Here, we test the idea that sites occupied by apex predators can indicate high overall biodiversity, including high diversity of woody plants. To this end, we surveyed woody plant species within 500 m of Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) breeding sites in urban ecosystems of Japan and compared them with non-breeding control sites without goshawks. We found that goshawks successfully identified and signposted high levels of richness, abundance, and diversity of woody plants. Our findings show that sites occupied by top predatory species could be exploited as conservation proxies for high plant diversity. Due to their exigent ecological requirements, we would expect apex predators to be tied to high biodiversity levels in many other urban ecosystems worldwide.

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“…First of all, the employment of top predators should not be considered as a panacea for biodiversity prioritisation, an alert that has been repeated many times (e.g. Natsukawa, 2021; Natsukawa et al, 2021; Sergio et al, 2006; Sergio, Caro, et al, 2008). Second, just as with any indicator, the link with biodiversity should be tested whenever possible, rather than assumed blindly a priori.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, the northern goshawk (Accipiter gentilis; hereafter goshawk) is a raptor typical of mature forest that often preys preferentially on birds and can be associated with high avian and tree diversity (e.g. Burgas et al, 2014;Natsukawa, 2020Natsukawa, , 2021Natsukawa et al, 2021;Sergio et al, 2005). Whilst there is supporting evidence on the capacity of this species to impose causative changes in avian diversity (Burgas et al, 2021), it is difficult to hypothesise a causative link with tree diversity, more likely ascribed to habitat selection strategies.…”

Section: Top Predators As Bio-indicatorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Amongst potential indicator taxa, one group of species that has recently attracted research attention is the one of top predators (e.g. Burgas et al, 2014;Natsukawa et al, 2021;Sergio, Caro, et al, 2008). In short, this expectation is based on the assumption that the conservation of a top predator automatically results in the preservation of the whole biodiversity of its supporting ecosystem (Sergio, Caro, et al, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Top predators as biodiversity indicators: A meta‐analysis

Natsukawa

2022

Ecology Letters

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Identifying efficient biodiversity indicators is a key pillar of the global conservation strategy. Top predators have been proposed as reliable biodiversity signposts, but their role is controversial. Here, we verified their performance by a meta-analysis of published studies and found solid support for their efficacy as biodiversity indicators.As to be expected for any indicator species, efficacy was stronger for biodiversity components 'ecologically closer' to the predator (i.e. broad groups that include species providing key resources, such as avian and tree diversity for a bird-eating predator that nests in trees) and declined for the diversity of components more 'ecologically remote' from the predator (e.g. butterfly diversity for a fish-eating predator). This confirmed a link between the top predatory role and biodiversity and set the context for its functionality. These results show that, on average, top predators are justified candidates as biodiversity indicators and that prioritisation of conservation action based on their occurrence is likely to provide broader ecosystem benefits. However, such role should be confirmed on a case-by-case basis, acknowledging that no indicator can portray everything, checking the compatibility of the biodiversity components linked to the predator with the established conservation objectives and ideally integrating predators with other complementary indicator groups.

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Raptor breeding sites indicate high taxonomic and functional diversities of wintering birds in urban ecosystems

Cited by 9 publications

References 55 publications

Species Traits Drive Long-Term Population Trends of Common Breeding Birds in Northern Italy

Species Traits Drive Long-Term Population Trends of Common Breeding Birds in Northern Italy

Raptor breeding sites indicate high plant biodiversity in urban ecosystems

Top predators as biodiversity indicators: A meta‐analysis

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