Ecological niche change as a strategy for survival: local adjustments shape distinct population trends in the Eurasian Skylark

The Eurasian skylark (Alauda arvensis) is an open-habitat passerine bird that is declining throughout Europe, mainly due to agricultural intensification. However, population responses to environmental changes are often geographic- and environment-dependent, preventing generalisation and transferabil...

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Main Authors: Tirozzi, P, Orioli, V, Dondina, O, Bani, L
Format: Conference Object
Language:English
Published: 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10281/481719
https://www.cio2023varese.it/
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record_format openpolar
spelling ftunivmilanobic:oai:boa.unimib.it:10281/481719 2024-06-23T07:45:04+00:00 Ecological niche change as a strategy for survival: local adjustments shape distinct population trends in the Eurasian Skylark Tirozzi, P Orioli, V Dondina, O Bani, L Tirozzi, P Orioli, V Dondina, O Bani, L 2023 https://hdl.handle.net/10281/481719 https://www.cio2023varese.it/ eng eng XXI Convegno Italiano di Ornitologia - CIO23 https://hdl.handle.net/10281/481719 https://www.cio2023varese.it/ farmland bird grassland skylark niche population trends info:eu-repo/semantics/conferenceObject 2023 ftunivmilanobic 2024-06-04T23:41:23Z The Eurasian skylark (Alauda arvensis) is an open-habitat passerine bird that is declining throughout Europe, mainly due to agricultural intensification. However, population responses to environmental changes are often geographic- and environment-dependent, preventing generalisation and transferability of ecological relationships. For three sub-regions of Lombardy (northern Italy) characterised by both different environmental conditions and human pressures (the Alps, Plain, Oltrepò), we decomposed population trends (1992–2021) of the species and assessed changes of the realised Grinnellian niches over three decades. In each sub-region, although the niche did not show divergence, we found an overall reduction over time. In the Alps, contraction of niche occupancy in meadows and pastures was not associated with a population decline. It is likely due to extensive availability of natural grasslands that counteracted the niche reduction and promoted a positive population trend (+164%). Conversely, in the Plain and the Oltrepò sub-regions, the observed population declines (−99% and −36%, respectively) could be linked to a general decrease of niche occupancy in arable lands. In the Oltrepò, differently from the Plain, a gradual expansion of the niche in meadows and pastures at higher altitudes could have counterbalanced the former reduction, playing a significant role to mitigate the negative population trend in the area. The joint application of population trend analysis and niche modelling, as well as the decomposition of population responses in relation to different environmental contexts, can contribute to a better understanding of ecological processes affecting population dynamics and to support policy makers for planning targeted conservation strategies. Conference Object Alauda arvensis Eurasian Skylark Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca: BOA (Bicocca Open Archive)
institution Open Polar
collection Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca: BOA (Bicocca Open Archive)
op_collection_id ftunivmilanobic
language English
topic farmland
bird
grassland
skylark
niche population trends
spellingShingle farmland
bird
grassland
skylark
niche population trends
Tirozzi, P
Orioli, V
Dondina, O
Bani, L
Ecological niche change as a strategy for survival: local adjustments shape distinct population trends in the Eurasian Skylark
topic_facet farmland
bird
grassland
skylark
niche population trends
description The Eurasian skylark (Alauda arvensis) is an open-habitat passerine bird that is declining throughout Europe, mainly due to agricultural intensification. However, population responses to environmental changes are often geographic- and environment-dependent, preventing generalisation and transferability of ecological relationships. For three sub-regions of Lombardy (northern Italy) characterised by both different environmental conditions and human pressures (the Alps, Plain, Oltrepò), we decomposed population trends (1992–2021) of the species and assessed changes of the realised Grinnellian niches over three decades. In each sub-region, although the niche did not show divergence, we found an overall reduction over time. In the Alps, contraction of niche occupancy in meadows and pastures was not associated with a population decline. It is likely due to extensive availability of natural grasslands that counteracted the niche reduction and promoted a positive population trend (+164%). Conversely, in the Plain and the Oltrepò sub-regions, the observed population declines (−99% and −36%, respectively) could be linked to a general decrease of niche occupancy in arable lands. In the Oltrepò, differently from the Plain, a gradual expansion of the niche in meadows and pastures at higher altitudes could have counterbalanced the former reduction, playing a significant role to mitigate the negative population trend in the area. The joint application of population trend analysis and niche modelling, as well as the decomposition of population responses in relation to different environmental contexts, can contribute to a better understanding of ecological processes affecting population dynamics and to support policy makers for planning targeted conservation strategies.
author2 Tirozzi, P
Orioli, V
Dondina, O
Bani, L
format Conference Object
author Tirozzi, P
Orioli, V
Dondina, O
Bani, L
author_facet Tirozzi, P
Orioli, V
Dondina, O
Bani, L
author_sort Tirozzi, P
title Ecological niche change as a strategy for survival: local adjustments shape distinct population trends in the Eurasian Skylark
title_short Ecological niche change as a strategy for survival: local adjustments shape distinct population trends in the Eurasian Skylark
title_full Ecological niche change as a strategy for survival: local adjustments shape distinct population trends in the Eurasian Skylark
title_fullStr Ecological niche change as a strategy for survival: local adjustments shape distinct population trends in the Eurasian Skylark
title_full_unstemmed Ecological niche change as a strategy for survival: local adjustments shape distinct population trends in the Eurasian Skylark
title_sort ecological niche change as a strategy for survival: local adjustments shape distinct population trends in the eurasian skylark
publishDate 2023
url https://hdl.handle.net/10281/481719
https://www.cio2023varese.it/
genre Alauda arvensis
Eurasian Skylark
genre_facet Alauda arvensis
Eurasian Skylark
op_relation XXI Convegno Italiano di Ornitologia - CIO23
https://hdl.handle.net/10281/481719
https://www.cio2023varese.it/
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