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Research Article

Bird abundances in primary and secondary growths in Papua New Guinea: a preliminary assessment [ 373-388 ]

Kateřina Tvardíková

Abstract
Papua New Guinea is the third largest remaining area of tropical forest after the Amazon and Congo basins. However, the growing intensity of large-scale slash-and-burn agriculture and logging call for conservation research to assess how local people´s traditional land-use practices result in conservation of local biodiversity, of which a species-rich and diverse component is the avian community. With this in mind, I conducted a preliminary survey of birds in small-scale secondary plots and in adjacent primary forest in Wanang Conservation Area in Papua New Guinea. I used mist-netting, point counts, and transect walks to compare the bird communities of 7-year-old secondary growth, and neighboring primary forest. The preliminary survey lasted 10 days and was conducted during the dry season (July) of 2008. I found no significant differences in summed bird abundances between forest types. However, species richness was higher in primary forest (98 species) than in secondary (78 species). The response of individual feeding guilds was also variable. Two habitats differed mainly in presence of canopy frugivores, which were more abundant (more than 80%) in primary than in secondary forests. A large difference (70%) was found also in understory and mid-story insectivores. Species occurring mainly in secondary forest were Hooded Butcherbird (Cracticus cassicus), Brown Oriole (Oriolus szalayi), and Helmeted Friarbird (Philemon buceroides). Examples of primary forest species were Red-bellied Pitta (Pitta erythrogaster), Little Kingfisher (Alcedo pusilla), and Zoe's Imperial Pigeon (Ducula zoeae). My results suggest that changes in bird assemblages occur even in relatively undisturbed landscapes in response to small-scale shifting agriculture that is crucial for local people’s livelihood; it also seems that traditional land use by local people favors the persistence of a rich bird species pool in the forested and traditionally managed landscape.


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    English: Papua New Guinea is the third largest remaining area of tropical forest after the Amazon and Congo basins and home of hundreds of unique species at the same time. Small scale slash-and-burn agriculture has occurred there for at least 5,000 years, and local people valued forests as the source of materials and animal and vegetable foodstuffs. This technique is likely to remain the economic base of a large proportion of population due to economic situation in country. However, rapid population growth and involvement in cash economies caused a shortening of rotation times and clearing of larger areas. Scientist surveyed bird communities to reveal impact of traditional agriculture on community compositions of small scale secondary growths following slash-and-burn and primary forest plots. They found primary forest more diverse and accommodating more frugivorous and insectivorous birds than small plots used as gardens 7 years ago. These results stress that changes in avian communities occur even in small secondary plots and conservation of large blocks of primary forest would be the ideal course to follow for conserving the diversity of tropical forest bird species. Considering both forest types as a whole, local people seems to increase bird species diversity, as secondary forest was not simply depleted primary forest but included unique species too. It has to be pointed out, that small scale slash-and–burn plots increase overall diversity of habitat and should not be seen as threat. However, its conservational benefit is lost at the moment when they exceed those of primary forests.

    Español: Papúa Nueva Guinea aloja la tercera area de selva mas grande que existe en el mundo, despues de la Amozanica y aquella del Congo y es altamente diversa. La agricultura a pequeña escala basada en roza-tumba-quema es una actividad que se ha dado por los habitante de PNG desde cuando menos hace 5,000 años y los habitantes rurales valoran de modo importante las selvas como fuente de material y de alimento. La roza-tumba-quema es una actividad que forma la bese de la economia de una proporcion alta de la poblacion humana en este pais. Sin embargo, el rapido crecimiento de la poblacion humana y la adopcion de economias basadas en intercambio de productos por moneda ha causado un recorte en el tiempo de rotacion de las parcelas agricolas y una mayor deforestacion., con un impacto importante sobre las comunidades animales, como es el caso de las aves. Nuestro estudio estuvo dirigido a monitorear la poblaciond de aves en vegetacion secundaria, regenerada poco despues de la roza-tumba-quema y aquella que se encuentra en el interior de la selva madura. La selva madura resulto ser mas diversa en especies y en esta se encuentran mas especies frugivoras y insectovoras que en la selva secundaria que se regenero despues de 7 años de ser usada la parcela como hortaliza. Esto sugiere que decremento importantes en la composicion y riqueza de la comunidad de aves se dan rapidamente en pequeños lotes de vegetacion secundaria joven, por lo que es importante conservar extensiones grandes de selva para asegurar la proteccion de la comunidad de aves que originakmente se encuentra en su interior. Sin embargo, tambien fue claro que las parcelas de vegetacion secundario estudiadas, tambien incluian especies unicas, por lo que estos parches de regeneracion pueden ser importantes en la conservacion de aves, en conjunto con la proteccion de areas de selva amplias.

    Portugués: Papua Nova Guiné é a terceira maior área remanescente de floresta tropical do mundo ficando atrás das bacias Amazônicas e do Congo e abriga centenas de espécies únicas. Em pequenas escalas agricultura de corte e queima ocorreu nos últimos 5000 anos com as comunidades locais aprendendo a valorar a floresta como fonte de materiais e alimentos de origem animal e vegetal. Essas técnicas provavelmente permanecem e são as bases econômicas de uma grande proporção da população devido à situação econômica do país. Entretanto o rápido crescimento populacional e o envolvimento de dinheiro no consumo de produtos provenientes da floresta causaram em um curto espaço de tempo a abertura de grandes áreas de floresta. Nesse estudo foi inventariada a comunidade de aves para revelar o impacto da agricultura tradicional sobre as aves em uma pequena área de vegetação secundária seguido de corte e queima e em áreas de floresta primária. Os autores encontraram que a floresta primária é mais diversa, possui um maior número espécies frugivoras e insetívoras do que as áreas de floresta secundária que foram perturbadas sete anos atrás. Os resultados reforçam a idéia que ocorrem mudanças nas comunidades de aves mesmo em pequenas escalas de florestas secundárias e que a conservação de grandes blocos de florestas primárias são essenciais para conservar as espécies de aves de florestas tropicais. Considerando os dois tipos de floresta, a população local observa um aumento na diversidade de espécies de aves, como a floresta secundária não foi simplesmente eliminada da floresta primária nessas áreas também são encontradas espécies únicas. Essas pequenas áreas que sofreram corte e queima aumentam a diversidade total de habitats e poderiam ser vistas como uma área que não representam uma ameaça a floresta primária. Entretanto, o benefício de conservação dessas área secundárias são perdidas quando as mesmas ultrapassam a área de floresta primária remanescente.
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   Tropical Conservation Science is an open-access e-journal that publishes research relating to conservation of tropical forests and other tropical ecosystems.

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