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Having our yards and sharing them too: the collective effects of yards on native bird species in an urban landscape
Residential yards comprise a substantial portion of urban landscapes, and the collective effects of the management of many individual yards may \"scale up\" to affect urban biodiversity. We conducted bird surveys and social surveys in Chicago-area (Illinois, USA) residential neighborhoods to identify the relative importance of yard design and management activities for native birds. We found that groups of neighboring yards, in the aggregate, were more important for native bird species richness than environmental characteristics at the neighborhood or landscape scale. The ratio of evergreen to deciduous trees in yards and the percentage of yards with trees and plants with fruits or berries were positively associated with native bird species richness, whereas the number of outdoor cats had a negative association. The number of birdfeeders was not an important predictor for native species richness. We also found that migratory birds were observed on transects with more wildlife-friendly features in yards, and nonnative birds were observed on transects with greater numbers of outdoor cats and dogs. Our results highlight the potential importance of residential matrix management as a conservation strategy in urban areas.
Journal Article
Welcome to subirdia : sharing our neighborhoods with wrens, robins, woodpeckers, and other wildlife
\"Welcome to Subirdia presents a surprising discovery: the suburbs of many large cities support incredible biological diversity. Populations and communities of a great variety of birds, as well as other creatures, are adapting to the conditions of our increasingly developed world. In this fascinating and optimistic book, John Marzluff reveals how our own actions affect the birds and animals that live in our cities and towns, and he provides ten specific strategies everyone can use to make human environments friendlier for our natural neighbors. Over many years of research and fieldwork, Marzluff and student assistants have closely followed the lives of thousands of tagged birds seeking food, mates, and shelter in cities and surrounding areas. From tiny Pacific wrens to grand pileated woodpeckers, diverse species now compatibly share human surroundings. By practicing careful stewardship with the biological riches in our cities and towns, Marzluff explains, we can foster a new relationship between humans and other living creatures--one that honors and enhances our mutual destiny.\" -- Publisher's description.
Book
Impact of urbanization on abundance and phenology of caterpillars and consequences for breeding in an insectivorous bird
Urbanization can have marked effects on plant and animal populations’ phenology, population size, predator–prey, interactions and reproductive success. These aspects are rarely studied simultaneously in a single system, and some are rarely investigated, e.g., how insect phenology responds to urban development. Here, we study a tri-trophic system of trees, phytophagous insects (caterpillars), and insectivorous birds (Great Tits) to assess how urbanization influences (1) the phenology of each component of this system, (2) insect abundance, and (3) avian reproductive success. We use data from two urban and two forest sites in Hungary, central Europe, collected over four consecutive years. Despite a trend of earlier leaf emergence in urban sites, there is no evidence for an earlier peak in caterpillar abundance. Thus, contrary to the frequently stated prediction in the literature, the earlier breeding of urban bird populations is not associated with an earlier peak in caterpillar availability. Despite this the seasonal dynamics of caterpillar biomass exhibited striking differences between habitat types with a single clear peak in forests, and several much smaller peaks in urban sites. Caterpillar biomass was higher in forests than urban areas across the entire sampling period, and between 8.5 and 24 times higher during the first brood’s chick-rearing period. This higher biomass was not associated with taller trees in forest sites, or with tree species identity, and occurred despite most of our focal trees being native to the study area. Urban Great Tits laid smaller clutches, experienced more frequent nestling mortality from starvation, reared fewer offspring to fledging age, and their fledglings had lower body mass. Our study strongly indicates that food limitation is responsible for lower avian reproductive success in cities, which is driven by reduced availability of the preferred nestling diet, i.e., caterpillars, rather than phenological shifts in the timing of peak food availability.
Journal Article
Sparrow
In Sparrow, award-winning science and natural history writer Kim Todd explores the bird\"s complex history, biology, and literary tradition. Todd describes the difference between Old World sparrows, like the house sparrow, which can nest in a garage or in an airport, and New World sparrows, which often stake their claim to remote islands or meadows in the high Sierra. In addition, she looks at the nineteenth-century Sparrow War in the United States--a battle over the sparrow\"s introduction--which set the stage for decades of discussions of invasive species. She examines the ways in which sparrows have taught us about evolution and the shocking recent decline of house sparrows in cities globally--this disappearance of a bird that seemed hardwired for success remains an ornithological mystery.
Book
Urban residents' perceptions of birds in the neighborhood: Biodiversity, cultural ecosystem services, and disservices
As our world becomes increasingly urbanized, cities are often where we come into contact with the natural world—not just in parks and urban nature preserves, but in more familiar places like residential yards. We conducted bird surveys and social surveys in Chicago-area residential landscapes near forest preserves (primarily in middle- and high-income areas) to examine residents' perceptions of the birds that co-inhabit their neighborhoods and the relationship of those perceptions with characteristics of the bird community. We found that residents value many aspects of neighborhood birds, especially those related to aesthetics and birds' place in the ecosystem. Our results indicate that while birds were generally well liked and annoyances were minor, several common and visible urban species, such as the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris), and Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata), may attract attention for their negative qualities, such as their sounds and effects on personal property. The results also indicate that residents' valuations of ecosystem services are linked to their perceptions of bird species richness rather than the actual species richness, and people may perceive only a subset of the birds in their neighborhoods. Although birds provide many important ecosystem services, perhaps one of their most important roles in cities is as a relatable and likable connecting point between city dwellers and the broader environment.
Journal Article
Greenspaces as shelters for the conservation of bird diversity in a big city
Increasing in human population causes expansion of urban areas, which threatens forest lands and the biodiversity they harbor. Greenspaces act a critical role maintaining bird diversity within urban areas. Here, we evaluated the effect of spatial characteristics of urban greenspaces on bird species richness to identify the role of greenspace design on bird diversity in Mexico City’s Metropolitan Area. We collected data on bird species richness residing in 44 greenspaces and quantified abiotic, biotic and dispersal attributes of each site. These attributes include size, degree of urbanization within and around the greenspace, vegetation cover, distance between sampled greenspaces, distance to nearby greenspace, distance to the closest natural vegetation patch, distance to city center and distance to periphery of the city. We used Generalized Linear Models to determine the effect of spatial characteristics of urban greenspaces on bird species richness. We then built matrices of beta diversity between greenspaces and assessed bird taxonomic dissimilarity via multivariate Bray-Curtis cluster analysis. Our results showed that bird species richness varies between greenspaces. However, species richness was not correlated with spatial characteristics or biotic attributes (P > 0.05), and we only found marginal correlations between built cover within the greenspace and richness of resident species (P = 0.065) and waterbird species (P = 0.070). Taxonomic similarity between greenspaces was correlated with distance between sampled greenspaces (P < 0.05), however, some dispersal attributes showed no significant effect, such as distance to periphery of the city and distance to the closest natural vegetation patch. Our resultssuggest that distances from areas with greater natural vegetation cover to the innermost parts of the city were too short to function as constraints on the ability of birds to disperse to and colonize urban greenspaces. Our study provides further support for the importance of greenspaces as refuges for conservation of bird diversity in urban areas and shows how urban greenspaces are being used by different bird species within a constantly growing urban landscape.
Journal Article
Glass traps: Investigating bird mortality at glass-fronted buildings in the Nilgiris
Bird-window collisions pose a significant but underexplored threat to the avian biodiversity in India. This study, the first of its kind in the Nilgiris, South India, documents bird collisions with glass surfaces over a year. A total of 35 incidents were recorded across two locations, Forestdale and Coonoor, involving 22 species from 15 families. Among these, 16 birds were found dead, 18 were injured, and one managed to fly away. Migratory species, particularly the Indian Blue Robin, had the highest number of collisions, while among resident birds, the White-cheeked Barbet and Spotted Dove were most affected. Collisions peaked during winter, highlighting seasonal vulnerability. Building architecture, especially reflective glass surfaces, played a crucial role in increasing collision risks. These findings underscore the urgent need for mitigation measures such as UV-reflective films, window modifications, and strategic landscaping. Promoting bird-friendly urban designs and raising awareness are essential to reducing avian mortality in expanding human settlements.
Journal Article
The conservation value of residential yards: linking birds and people
Urbanization is recognized as one of the greatest threats to biodiversity throughout the world. However, the vegetation within an urbanized landscape is diverse and includes a variety of native and exotic plant species. This variation allows for testing whether certain landscape designs outperform others in the support of native biodiversity. Residential yards represent a large component of an urban landscape and, if managed collectively for birds and other wildlife, could offset some of the negative effects of urbanization. In addition, many urbanites have their primary interaction with the natural world in their front and back yards. Therefore, ensuring positive wildlife experiences for them is essential in promoting urban biodiversity. At the Central Arizona-–Phoenix Long-Term Ecological Research site we tested the efficacy of native landscaping in residential yards in attracting native birds. We also explored the links between socioeconomic factors, landscape designs, and urban gradient measurements with the urban bird communities. A redundancy analysis suggested that native desert bird species increased in abundance in neighborhoods with desert landscaping designs, neighborhoods closer to large desert tracts, and higher-income neighborhoods. Variance partitioning showed that collectively these three sets of environmental variables explained almost 50%% of the variation in the urban bird community. Results suggested racial and economic inequities in access to biodiversity, whereby predominantly Hispanic and lower-income neighborhoods had fewer native birds. We also found that residents' satisfaction with bird diversity was positively correlated with actual bird diversity. Our study provides new insights into the relative importance of socioeconomic variables and common urban ecological measurements in explaining urban bird communities. Urban planners can use this information to develop residential landscapes that support the well-being of both birds and people.
Journal Article
Covariation in urban birds providing cultural services or disservices and people
1. The spatial distributions of biodiversity and people vary across landscapes and are critical to the delivery of ecosystem services and disservices. The high densities of people and often of birds in urban areas lead to frequent human-avian interactions, which can be positive or negative for people's well-being. The identities of the bird species providing these services or disservices tend to be quite different; however, it is unclear how their abundance and richness covary with human population density, and hence with potential recipients of these services and disservices. 2. We surveyed bird populations in 106 tiles (500 × 500 m) across the 174 km² of an extended urban area in southern England. From the literature, we identified two groups of species: those associated with positive interactions for human well-being and those that display behaviours that are negative for human well-being. We estimated the abundance (adjusted for detection probability) and richness of each group and modelled how they covary with human population density. 3. Aggregation of population estimates for the 35 service and nine disservice species observed revealed 593,128 (95% confidence interval: 541,817-657,046) and 225,491 (200,134-235,066) birds respectively. Across the surveyed tiles, there were 1.09 service and 0.42 disservice birds per person. 4. There was a peaking quadratic relationship between service abundance and human population density, but a negative linear relationship between richness and human density. Conversely, there were positive linear relationships for both abundance and richness of disservice species with human density. The ratio of service to disservice birds shifted from 3.5-1 at intermediate human densities to 1-1 in more densely populated areas. 5. Synthesis and applications. Differences in the distributions of service and disservice species, and the extremely low ratios of birds to people particularly in socioeconomically deprived areas, mean that people there have few opportunities for contact with birds, and the contact they do have is equally likely to be negative as positive for human well-being. We recommend spatial targeting of improvements in green infrastructure, combined with the targeted provisioning of food and nesting places for service species, to promote positive interactions between birds and people.
Journal Article