Morphological characteristics influence the spatial mixing patterns of shorebirds at Shengjin Lake
Abstract The coexistence of species with similar ecological niches is one of the core interests of community ecology research. However, how functional feeding traits, including bill size and leg length, determine the niche of mixed flocks of shorebird species has seldomly been studied, as well as, m...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:b1893d3424194b0ea3fa910831a437c0 2023-08-15T12:42:54+02:00 Morphological characteristics influence the spatial mixing patterns of shorebirds at Shengjin Lake Chao Yu Ruilin Zhang Lizhi Zhou Lei Cheng Yiwei Bao Yunwei Song 2023-05-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10054 https://doaj.org/article/b1893d3424194b0ea3fa910831a437c0 EN eng Wiley https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10054 https://doaj.org/toc/2045-7758 2045-7758 doi:10.1002/ece3.10054 https://doaj.org/article/b1893d3424194b0ea3fa910831a437c0 Ecology and Evolution, Vol 13, Iss 5, Pp n/a-n/a (2023) functional feeding traits mix‐species foraging niche overlap Shengjin Lake wintering shorebirds Ecology QH540-549.5 article 2023 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10054 2023-07-23T00:35:22Z Abstract The coexistence of species with similar ecological niches is one of the core interests of community ecology research. However, how functional feeding traits, including bill size and leg length, determine the niche of mixed flocks of shorebird species has seldomly been studied, as well as, microhabitat variables affect the spatial patterns of availability and the quality of patches for wintering. From October 2016 to March 2017 at Shengjin Lake, Anhui Province, China, we recorded 226 scan samples from the different microhabitats and 93 focal animal videos of four common shorebird species: common greenshank, spotted redshank, Kentish plover, and little ringed plover. We found that the species participating in the mixed groups were different in each microhabitat. The results of the overlap index for microhabitats and foraging techniques between the species were consistent with the morphological characteristics of these species. Kentish and little ringed plovers had the highest Pianka's niche overlap index values of 0.95 and 0.98 for microhabitats and foraging techniques, respectively, whereas common greenshank and spotted redshank had values of 0.78 and 0.89, respectively. Common greenshank and spotted redshank used four foraging techniques: a single probe (PR), multiple probes (MPR), a single peck (PE), and multiple pecks (MPE). Kentish and little ringed plovers only used PE and MPE. The mean bill size, mean leg length, and mean foraging frequency were significantly associated with water depth. The mean bill size and mean leg length were both significantly correlated with the mean foraging frequency of shorebirds. The vegetated area was the most important variable for grouping among shorebirds. We concluded that the four species showed differences in their preferred microhabitats and foraging patterns. Interspecific morphological differences, including bill and leg lengths, resulted in niche differentiation. Thus, effective resource allocation by regional species was realized, and a dynamic balance was ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Ringed Plover Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Ecology and Evolution 13 5 |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
functional feeding traits mix‐species foraging niche overlap Shengjin Lake wintering shorebirds Ecology QH540-549.5 |
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functional feeding traits mix‐species foraging niche overlap Shengjin Lake wintering shorebirds Ecology QH540-549.5 Chao Yu Ruilin Zhang Lizhi Zhou Lei Cheng Yiwei Bao Yunwei Song Morphological characteristics influence the spatial mixing patterns of shorebirds at Shengjin Lake |
topic_facet |
functional feeding traits mix‐species foraging niche overlap Shengjin Lake wintering shorebirds Ecology QH540-549.5 |
description |
Abstract The coexistence of species with similar ecological niches is one of the core interests of community ecology research. However, how functional feeding traits, including bill size and leg length, determine the niche of mixed flocks of shorebird species has seldomly been studied, as well as, microhabitat variables affect the spatial patterns of availability and the quality of patches for wintering. From October 2016 to March 2017 at Shengjin Lake, Anhui Province, China, we recorded 226 scan samples from the different microhabitats and 93 focal animal videos of four common shorebird species: common greenshank, spotted redshank, Kentish plover, and little ringed plover. We found that the species participating in the mixed groups were different in each microhabitat. The results of the overlap index for microhabitats and foraging techniques between the species were consistent with the morphological characteristics of these species. Kentish and little ringed plovers had the highest Pianka's niche overlap index values of 0.95 and 0.98 for microhabitats and foraging techniques, respectively, whereas common greenshank and spotted redshank had values of 0.78 and 0.89, respectively. Common greenshank and spotted redshank used four foraging techniques: a single probe (PR), multiple probes (MPR), a single peck (PE), and multiple pecks (MPE). Kentish and little ringed plovers only used PE and MPE. The mean bill size, mean leg length, and mean foraging frequency were significantly associated with water depth. The mean bill size and mean leg length were both significantly correlated with the mean foraging frequency of shorebirds. The vegetated area was the most important variable for grouping among shorebirds. We concluded that the four species showed differences in their preferred microhabitats and foraging patterns. Interspecific morphological differences, including bill and leg lengths, resulted in niche differentiation. Thus, effective resource allocation by regional species was realized, and a dynamic balance was ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Chao Yu Ruilin Zhang Lizhi Zhou Lei Cheng Yiwei Bao Yunwei Song |
author_facet |
Chao Yu Ruilin Zhang Lizhi Zhou Lei Cheng Yiwei Bao Yunwei Song |
author_sort |
Chao Yu |
title |
Morphological characteristics influence the spatial mixing patterns of shorebirds at Shengjin Lake |
title_short |
Morphological characteristics influence the spatial mixing patterns of shorebirds at Shengjin Lake |
title_full |
Morphological characteristics influence the spatial mixing patterns of shorebirds at Shengjin Lake |
title_fullStr |
Morphological characteristics influence the spatial mixing patterns of shorebirds at Shengjin Lake |
title_full_unstemmed |
Morphological characteristics influence the spatial mixing patterns of shorebirds at Shengjin Lake |
title_sort |
morphological characteristics influence the spatial mixing patterns of shorebirds at shengjin lake |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10054 https://doaj.org/article/b1893d3424194b0ea3fa910831a437c0 |
genre |
Ringed Plover |
genre_facet |
Ringed Plover |
op_source |
Ecology and Evolution, Vol 13, Iss 5, Pp n/a-n/a (2023) |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10054 https://doaj.org/toc/2045-7758 2045-7758 doi:10.1002/ece3.10054 https://doaj.org/article/b1893d3424194b0ea3fa910831a437c0 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10054 |
container_title |
Ecology and Evolution |
container_volume |
13 |
container_issue |
5 |
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1774297701837438976 |