Bird communities of the Arctic shrub tundra of Yamal: habitat specialists and generalists
The ratio of habitat generalists to specialists in birds has been suggested as a good indicator of ecosystem changes due to e.g. climate change and other anthropogenic perturbations. Most studies focusing on this functional component of biodiversity originate, however, from temperate regions. The Eu...
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Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10037/4970 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0050335 |
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ftunivtroemsoe:oai:munin.uit.no:10037/4970 2023-05-15T14:56:52+02:00 Bird communities of the Arctic shrub tundra of Yamal: habitat specialists and generalists Sokolov, Vasily Ehrich, Dorothee Yoccoz, Nigel Sokolov, Alexander Lecomte, Nicolas 2012 https://hdl.handle.net/10037/4970 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0050335 eng eng Public Library of Science (PLoS) PLoS ONE (2012). vol. 7(12): e50335 FRIDAID 988296 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0050335 1932-6203 https://hdl.handle.net/10037/4970 URN:NBN:no-uit_munin_4696 openAccess VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480::Zoophysiology and comparative physiology: 483 VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480::Zoofysiologi og komparativ fysiologi: 483 VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480::Ecology: 488 VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480::Økologi: 488 Journal article Tidsskriftartikkel Peer reviewed 2012 ftunivtroemsoe https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0050335 2021-06-25T17:53:30Z The ratio of habitat generalists to specialists in birds has been suggested as a good indicator of ecosystem changes due to e.g. climate change and other anthropogenic perturbations. Most studies focusing on this functional component of biodiversity originate, however, from temperate regions. The Eurasian Arctic tundra is currently experiencing an unprecedented combination of climate change, change in grazing pressure by domestic reindeer and growing human activity. Here we monitored bird communities in a tundra landscape harbouring shrub and open habitats in order to analyse bird habitat relationships and quantify habitat specialization. We used ordination methods to analyse habitat associations and estimated the proportions of specialists in each of the main habitats. Correspondence Analysis identified three main bird communities, inhabiting upland, lowland and dense willow shrubs. We documented a stable structure of communities despite large multiannual variations of bird density (from 90 to 175 pairs/km2). Willow shrub thickets were a hotspot for bird density, but not for species richness. The thickets hosted many specialized species whose main distribution area was south of the tundra. If current arctic changes result in a shrubification of the landscape as many studies suggested, we would expect an increase in the overall bird abundance together with an increase of local specialists, since they are associated with willow thickets. The majority of these species have a southern origin and their increase in abundance would represent a strengthening of the boreal component in the southern tundra, perhaps at the expense of species typical of the subarctic zone, which appear to be generalists within this zone. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Climate change Subarctic Tundra University of Tromsø: Munin Open Research Archive Arctic PLoS ONE 7 12 e50335 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Tromsø: Munin Open Research Archive |
op_collection_id |
ftunivtroemsoe |
language |
English |
topic |
VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480::Zoophysiology and comparative physiology: 483 VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480::Zoofysiologi og komparativ fysiologi: 483 VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480::Ecology: 488 VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480::Økologi: 488 |
spellingShingle |
VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480::Zoophysiology and comparative physiology: 483 VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480::Zoofysiologi og komparativ fysiologi: 483 VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480::Ecology: 488 VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480::Økologi: 488 Sokolov, Vasily Ehrich, Dorothee Yoccoz, Nigel Sokolov, Alexander Lecomte, Nicolas Bird communities of the Arctic shrub tundra of Yamal: habitat specialists and generalists |
topic_facet |
VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480::Zoophysiology and comparative physiology: 483 VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480::Zoofysiologi og komparativ fysiologi: 483 VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Zoology and botany: 480::Ecology: 488 VDP::Matematikk og Naturvitenskap: 400::Zoologiske og botaniske fag: 480::Økologi: 488 |
description |
The ratio of habitat generalists to specialists in birds has been suggested as a good indicator of ecosystem changes due to e.g. climate change and other anthropogenic perturbations. Most studies focusing on this functional component of biodiversity originate, however, from temperate regions. The Eurasian Arctic tundra is currently experiencing an unprecedented combination of climate change, change in grazing pressure by domestic reindeer and growing human activity. Here we monitored bird communities in a tundra landscape harbouring shrub and open habitats in order to analyse bird habitat relationships and quantify habitat specialization. We used ordination methods to analyse habitat associations and estimated the proportions of specialists in each of the main habitats. Correspondence Analysis identified three main bird communities, inhabiting upland, lowland and dense willow shrubs. We documented a stable structure of communities despite large multiannual variations of bird density (from 90 to 175 pairs/km2). Willow shrub thickets were a hotspot for bird density, but not for species richness. The thickets hosted many specialized species whose main distribution area was south of the tundra. If current arctic changes result in a shrubification of the landscape as many studies suggested, we would expect an increase in the overall bird abundance together with an increase of local specialists, since they are associated with willow thickets. The majority of these species have a southern origin and their increase in abundance would represent a strengthening of the boreal component in the southern tundra, perhaps at the expense of species typical of the subarctic zone, which appear to be generalists within this zone. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Sokolov, Vasily Ehrich, Dorothee Yoccoz, Nigel Sokolov, Alexander Lecomte, Nicolas |
author_facet |
Sokolov, Vasily Ehrich, Dorothee Yoccoz, Nigel Sokolov, Alexander Lecomte, Nicolas |
author_sort |
Sokolov, Vasily |
title |
Bird communities of the Arctic shrub tundra of Yamal: habitat specialists and generalists |
title_short |
Bird communities of the Arctic shrub tundra of Yamal: habitat specialists and generalists |
title_full |
Bird communities of the Arctic shrub tundra of Yamal: habitat specialists and generalists |
title_fullStr |
Bird communities of the Arctic shrub tundra of Yamal: habitat specialists and generalists |
title_full_unstemmed |
Bird communities of the Arctic shrub tundra of Yamal: habitat specialists and generalists |
title_sort |
bird communities of the arctic shrub tundra of yamal: habitat specialists and generalists |
publisher |
Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/10037/4970 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0050335 |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic Climate change Subarctic Tundra |
genre_facet |
Arctic Climate change Subarctic Tundra |
op_relation |
PLoS ONE (2012). vol. 7(12): e50335 FRIDAID 988296 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0050335 1932-6203 https://hdl.handle.net/10037/4970 URN:NBN:no-uit_munin_4696 |
op_rights |
openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0050335 |
container_title |
PLoS ONE |
container_volume |
7 |
container_issue |
12 |
container_start_page |
e50335 |
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1766328924681273344 |