Can guava monocultures (Psidium guajava L.) function as refuge for bird conservation?

By

Da Silva, Cleverton
Ruiz-Esparza, Juan
Da Silva, Fabiana Oliveira
de Azevedo, Cristiano Schetini
Ribeiro, Adauto Souza

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2021-11-10

Original Publication

Neotropical Biology and Conservation

Volume

16

Series / Issue

Issue: 4

Pages

475--491

Subjects

Agricultural environment , biodiversity-friendly agriculture , guava orchards , semiarid

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Brazil Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/neotropical.16.e70296

 

Abstract

Agricultural intensification negatively affects bird communities, and the response of birds to these changes varies from those that survive and increase their populations (disturb-tolerant species) to those that cannot adapt to new conditions and are regionally extinct (disturb-sensitive species). Thus, the present study sought to investigate the bird community in 39 guava orchards in the semiarid region of the state of Sergipe, northeast Brazil. Field observations were made between July and October 2017, through a one-hour visit to each orchard. Samplings were conducted using the MacKinnon’s List method. In addition to bird sampling, walks were carried out in the orchards to observe nesting. Seventy-six species of birds belonging to 30 families were recorded using the guava orchards. The most frequent species wereVanellus chilensis,Columbina talpacoti,Columbina picui,Crotophaga ani,Pitangus sulphuratusandSporophila albogularis. Of the 186 nests recorded in the orchards, the majority (n = 144 nests; 77.4%) belonged toColumbina picui,Columbina talpacotiandColumbina minuta. The results demonstrate that the bird community in the guava orchards is formed only by disturb-tolerant species, showing that the studied guava orchards are not favorable to the conservation of disturb-sensitive birds of the Caatinga domain.