Threshold effect of eucalypt density on birds in buloke woodlands: the importance of species choice in restoration projects
Paper
Paper/Presentation Title | Threshold effect of eucalypt density on birds in buloke woodlands: the importance of species choice in restoration projects |
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Presentation Type | Paper |
Authors | |
Author | Maron, Martine |
Editors | Bell, Brian |
Journal or Proceedings Title | Third Biennial Australasian Ornithological Conference |
Number of Pages | 1 |
Year | 2005 |
Place of Publication | Nelson, New Zealand |
Conference/Event | 3rd Biennial Australasian Ornithological Conference (AOC2005) |
Event Details | 3rd Biennial Australasian Ornithological Conference (AOC2005) Event Date 06 to end of 10 Dec 2005 Event Location Blenheim, New Zealand |
Abstract | The buloke woodlands of south eastern Australia are of high value for bird conservation but are nationally endangered and highly depleted. Buloke is a slow-growing species and current projects aiming to restore buloke woodland usually incorporate a high density of faster-growing eucalypts in plantings. I aimed to determine whether the habitat value of buloke woodland to woodland bird assemblages is altered when eucalypts are present, and in particular, whether a particular density of eucalypts facilitates invasion by agressive noisy miners - a species absent from pure buloke woodland. Transects in 31 buloke woodland sites containing eucalypt densities between .0-16/ha were surveyed three times each over a period of one year. I found that the probability of noisy miner presence in buloke woodland increased markedly where eucalypts were present at a density of approximately five per hectare. This is the likely cause of a substantial difference in bird assemblage structure and composition between sites with >5 eucalypts/ha and those with fewer eucalypts. Low-eucalypt density sites had more hooded robins, dusky woodswallows, varied sittellas and yellow thornbills, all smaller-bodied insectivorous species which are experiencing population declines in southern Australia. Higher eucalypt density sites were characterised by Australian magpies, white-plumed honeyeaters, crested pigeons and eastern rosellas, all common open-country or aggressive species. These findings have implications for revegetation and restoration practices in buloke woodlands, and potentially also in other non-eucalypt woodlands within the range of the noisy miner. |
Keywords | buloke woodlands; south eastern Australia; threshold effect; eucalypt density; birds |
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020 | 410303. Bioremediation |
310302. Community ecology (excl. invasive species ecology) | |
410407. Wildlife and habitat management | |
Public Notes | Conference publication consists of only the abstracts of papers presented at the conference. Paper itself was a spoken paper so no print copy available. Abstract only posted here. |
Byline Affiliations | Land Use Research Centre |
https://research.usq.edu.au/item/9xq97/threshold-effect-of-eucalypt-density-on-birds-in-buloke-woodlands-the-importance-of-species-choice-in-restoration-projects
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