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Gulliver travels to the fragmented tropics: geographic variation in mechanisms of avian extinction

Gulliver travels to the fragmented tropics: geographic variation in mechanisms of avian extinction Irrespective of geography, forest destruction and fragmentation lead to lower avian species richness. The underlying mechanisms causing local extirpations have been studied most thoroughly in northern temperate landscapes, where higher levels of brood parasitism, nest predation, and possibly decreased food availability are responsible for the loss of some species. Tropical landscapes are being similarly altered, but studies of responses by tropical birds remain relatively scarce. Predicting how tropical birds respond to habitat loss and fragmentation should not be extended directly from the results of temperate investigations. Tropical birds possess different evolutionary and life histories, which make them vulnerable to a different suite of threats than those normally considered for birds from temperate regions. These same traits, including greater physiological and sensory specialization, reduced dispersal capabilities, and much lower local and regional population densities, indicate that strategies for conserving bird diversity will be different in tropical landscapes than those for temperate regions. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment Ecological Society of America

Gulliver travels to the fragmented tropics: geographic variation in mechanisms of avian extinction

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Publisher
Ecological Society of America
Copyright
Copyright © 2005 by the Ecological Society of America
Subject
Reviews
ISSN
1540-9295
eISSN
1540-9309
DOI
10.1890/1540-9295%282005%29003%5B0085:GTTTFT%5D2.0.CO%3B2
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Irrespective of geography, forest destruction and fragmentation lead to lower avian species richness. The underlying mechanisms causing local extirpations have been studied most thoroughly in northern temperate landscapes, where higher levels of brood parasitism, nest predation, and possibly decreased food availability are responsible for the loss of some species. Tropical landscapes are being similarly altered, but studies of responses by tropical birds remain relatively scarce. Predicting how tropical birds respond to habitat loss and fragmentation should not be extended directly from the results of temperate investigations. Tropical birds possess different evolutionary and life histories, which make them vulnerable to a different suite of threats than those normally considered for birds from temperate regions. These same traits, including greater physiological and sensory specialization, reduced dispersal capabilities, and much lower local and regional population densities, indicate that strategies for conserving bird diversity will be different in tropical landscapes than those for temperate regions.

Journal

Frontiers in Ecology and the EnvironmentEcological Society of America

Published: Mar 1, 2005

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