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Birds associated with different tree species and structures in oil palm agroforestry landscapes in Malaysia

Birds associated with different tree species and structures in oil palm agroforestry landscapes in Malaysia
Birds associated with different tree species and structures in oil palm agroforestry landscapes in Malaysia

The expansion of oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) cultivation has been recognised as a major threat to tropical biodiversity. Smallholdings, however, unlike large-scale conventional monoculture oil palm plantations, often practice polyculture which may resemble an agroforestry system. These private holdings provide more heterogeneous vegetation which may support greater a greater diversity of birds. This study compared species richness and abundance of birds detected perching in oil palm (both dead and living trees) and seven other planted crop species within oil palm smallholdings. Using transect line surveys, we recorded a total of 816 birds of 39 species from 20 families. Our results indicate that bird species richness and abundance differed significantly between oil palm and the other planted tree species. Non-oil palm trees cumulatively increased bird species richness and abundance. Although birds overall perched more frequently on living oil palm trees (probably reflecting relative abundance), other species including breadfruit, mango, papaya, banana, and coconut, as well as dead trees, were also used. By measuring effect size, we also found that both bird species richness and abundance rely on tree structure and type of tree species. These findings tentatively suggest that providing a larger diversity of tree species within intensively managed oil palm plantations may support a wider variety of local bird species compared to monocultures.

Abundance, avian, biodiversity, crop, smallholding, species richness
0158-4197
Atiqah, Nurul
55de220d-0bca-444a-abeb-2085a3bd8f69
Yahya, Muhammad Syafiq
595eb6d8-e9ec-40fc-b9d3-5d93ccd7b016
Aisyah, Siti
23266422-1972-454f-9b11-503a9f00139a
Ashton-Butt, Adham
327a148f-4a26-45f2-9611-6b4378134e04
Azhar, Badrul
1b729d4a-a1a3-4a11-beab-9cf3a9cbaf4c
Atiqah, Nurul
55de220d-0bca-444a-abeb-2085a3bd8f69
Yahya, Muhammad Syafiq
595eb6d8-e9ec-40fc-b9d3-5d93ccd7b016
Aisyah, Siti
23266422-1972-454f-9b11-503a9f00139a
Ashton-Butt, Adham
327a148f-4a26-45f2-9611-6b4378134e04
Azhar, Badrul
1b729d4a-a1a3-4a11-beab-9cf3a9cbaf4c

Atiqah, Nurul, Yahya, Muhammad Syafiq, Aisyah, Siti, Ashton-Butt, Adham and Azhar, Badrul (2019) Birds associated with different tree species and structures in oil palm agroforestry landscapes in Malaysia. Emu. (doi:10.1080/01584197.2019.1621680).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The expansion of oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) cultivation has been recognised as a major threat to tropical biodiversity. Smallholdings, however, unlike large-scale conventional monoculture oil palm plantations, often practice polyculture which may resemble an agroforestry system. These private holdings provide more heterogeneous vegetation which may support greater a greater diversity of birds. This study compared species richness and abundance of birds detected perching in oil palm (both dead and living trees) and seven other planted crop species within oil palm smallholdings. Using transect line surveys, we recorded a total of 816 birds of 39 species from 20 families. Our results indicate that bird species richness and abundance differed significantly between oil palm and the other planted tree species. Non-oil palm trees cumulatively increased bird species richness and abundance. Although birds overall perched more frequently on living oil palm trees (probably reflecting relative abundance), other species including breadfruit, mango, papaya, banana, and coconut, as well as dead trees, were also used. By measuring effect size, we also found that both bird species richness and abundance rely on tree structure and type of tree species. These findings tentatively suggest that providing a larger diversity of tree species within intensively managed oil palm plantations may support a wider variety of local bird species compared to monocultures.

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More information

Accepted/In Press date: 16 May 2019
e-pub ahead of print date: 2 June 2019
Keywords: Abundance, avian, biodiversity, crop, smallholding, species richness

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 433903
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/433903
ISSN: 0158-4197
PURE UUID: ae405da8-e716-4283-a669-f85b38613462

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 05 Sep 2019 16:30
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 02:21

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Contributors

Author: Nurul Atiqah
Author: Muhammad Syafiq Yahya
Author: Siti Aisyah
Author: Adham Ashton-Butt
Author: Badrul Azhar

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