Seasonal variations of waterbird ecological networks under different saltpans management

Habitat change has increased the loss of wetlands and impacted highly on coastal biodiversity. Consequently, wetland-dependent species such as waterbirds have experienced a decline in their populations. This study proposes an application of bipartite networks using both the sampled sites and species...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Chefaoui, R.M (Author)
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier B.V. 2021
Subjects:
Online Access:View Fulltext in Publisher
LEADER 02624nam a2200385Ia 4500
001 10.1016-j.ecoinf.2021.101364
008 220427s2021 CNT 000 0 und d
020 |a 15749541 (ISSN) 
245 1 0 |a Seasonal variations of waterbird ecological networks under different saltpans management 
260 0 |b Elsevier B.V.  |c 2021 
856 |z View Fulltext in Publisher  |u https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2021.101364 
520 3 |a Habitat change has increased the loss of wetlands and impacted highly on coastal biodiversity. Consequently, wetland-dependent species such as waterbirds have experienced a decline in their populations. This study proposes an application of bipartite networks using both the sampled sites and species as nodes to assess seasonal variations in waterbirds composition and habitat specialization in response to the abandonment of saltpans. The sampling was carried out in active and abandoned saltpans of the Ria Formosa (Portugal) over four sampling periods to evaluate the temporal change in waterbird communities. Abundance was twice and species richness 14% higher in active saltpans than in abandoned ones. About 60% of the waterbirds indicated a high specificity towards active saltpans. Saltpans showed a high β-diversity and seasonal dynamic of waterbird community composition. Network dissimilarity across the year was dominated by turnover of the edges rather than species turnover. Dynamics in network structure and composition seemed to be related to bird dispersal, migration phenology, and habitat specialist strategies. Overall, this study highlights the importance of preserving the activity of saltpans as it conditions abundance, richness and dynamics of waterbird populations. Continued efforts are needed to reduce threats to coastal wetlands and restore abandoned saltpans worldwide, since these are key habitats for the conservation of resident and migratory waterbirds. © 2021 The Author(s) 
650 0 4 |a abundance 
650 0 4 |a Beta diversity 
650 0 4 |a biodiversity 
650 0 4 |a Biodiversity conservation 
650 0 4 |a Bipartite networks 
650 0 4 |a Bird communities 
650 0 4 |a community structure 
650 0 4 |a Faro [Portugal] 
650 0 4 |a Formosa 
650 0 4 |a habitat loss 
650 0 4 |a Land-use change 
650 0 4 |a population decline 
650 0 4 |a Portugal 
650 0 4 |a Ria Formosa 
650 0 4 |a sampling 
650 0 4 |a seasonal variation 
650 0 4 |a specialist 
650 0 4 |a specialization 
650 0 4 |a species richness 
650 0 4 |a wader 
650 0 4 |a Wetlands 
700 1 |a Chefaoui, R.M.  |e author 
773 |t Ecological Informatics