Fire responses by bird guilds and species in heathy dry forests in central Victoria, Australia
- Kuchinke, Diana, di Stefano, Julian, Loyn, Richard, Gell, Peter, Palmer, Grant
- Authors: Kuchinke, Diana , di Stefano, Julian , Loyn, Richard , Gell, Peter , Palmer, Grant
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Forest Ecology and Management Vol. 535, no. (2023), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Predicted increases in fire frequency and extent are being realised across Australia, bringing changes to the fire regime which may influence the availability of essential resources required by birds. However, few studies have examined either the impacts of fire frequency on birds or the impacts from both wildfire and planned burns, com bined. Birds were surveyed eight times across 84 sites in heathy dry forests in central Victoria, south-east Australia, from 2012 to 2014. Fire history records were retrieved from the 1970’s onwards, the time from which accurate planned burn records were kept. We developed mixed models to investigate how birds responded to time-since-fire and fire frequency, analysing total bird abundance, ten foraging guilds and 30 individual species. We found distinct responses by all modelled guilds and species to time-since-fire, along with evidence for responses to fire frequency. The greatest shifts in species’ abundances occurred during the first ten years post fire, with bird species commonly present across the stages greater than ten years since fire. For total bird abundance there was no statistically detectible difference between recently burnt forest (0-6 months) and other age classes. However, some guilds showed a significant drop in abundance in newly burnt vegetation (e.g. bark foragers, damp ground insectivores, those that feed on seeds close to the ground, tall shrub foragers). It is with guild and species’ responses that more differences across vegetation age classes became apparent. Significant increases in abundance were apparent in both the regrowth and new growth vegetation age classes, compared with older habitat (e.g. canopy foragers, damp ground insectivores, tall shrub foragers); open ground foragers were especially common in post-fire regrowth but then significantly declined. Other responses were more complex, with species’ preferences reflecting their foraging ecology. Some birds showed preferences across two age classes: sites that were young post-fire regrowth (6 months–2.5 years since fire) along with sites of old habitat (>35 years since fire), (e.g. Crimson Rosella, Scarlet Robin, Sulphur-crested Cockatoo), while some ground-foraging species became scarce in dense new-growth vegetation that appears 2.5–10 years post fire (e.g. Australian Magpie, Laughing Kookaburra and White-winged Chough). Such species may deserve specific management strategies to maintain populations in forests where substantial areas are burnt by wildfire or planned burns, over short periods of time. The model for total bird abundance showed a significant fire frequency response with birds preferring sites twice burnt within 35 years (e.g. bark and canopy-foraging guilds). Four guilds demonstrated a preference for sites frequently burnt, increasing in abundance as number of burns increased (nectarivores, open-ground foragers, seeds in trees foragers, tall shrub foragers). In contrast, two species appeared to prefer sites that had experienced low fire frequencies, a response not common to their guilds. Laughing Kookaburra (carnivore) and White-winged Chough (forages on open ground among trees) generally declined in abundance with increasing fire frequency. © 2023 Elsevier B.V.
- Authors: Kuchinke, Diana , di Stefano, Julian , Loyn, Richard , Gell, Peter , Palmer, Grant
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Forest Ecology and Management Vol. 535, no. (2023), p.
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: Predicted increases in fire frequency and extent are being realised across Australia, bringing changes to the fire regime which may influence the availability of essential resources required by birds. However, few studies have examined either the impacts of fire frequency on birds or the impacts from both wildfire and planned burns, com bined. Birds were surveyed eight times across 84 sites in heathy dry forests in central Victoria, south-east Australia, from 2012 to 2014. Fire history records were retrieved from the 1970’s onwards, the time from which accurate planned burn records were kept. We developed mixed models to investigate how birds responded to time-since-fire and fire frequency, analysing total bird abundance, ten foraging guilds and 30 individual species. We found distinct responses by all modelled guilds and species to time-since-fire, along with evidence for responses to fire frequency. The greatest shifts in species’ abundances occurred during the first ten years post fire, with bird species commonly present across the stages greater than ten years since fire. For total bird abundance there was no statistically detectible difference between recently burnt forest (0-6 months) and other age classes. However, some guilds showed a significant drop in abundance in newly burnt vegetation (e.g. bark foragers, damp ground insectivores, those that feed on seeds close to the ground, tall shrub foragers). It is with guild and species’ responses that more differences across vegetation age classes became apparent. Significant increases in abundance were apparent in both the regrowth and new growth vegetation age classes, compared with older habitat (e.g. canopy foragers, damp ground insectivores, tall shrub foragers); open ground foragers were especially common in post-fire regrowth but then significantly declined. Other responses were more complex, with species’ preferences reflecting their foraging ecology. Some birds showed preferences across two age classes: sites that were young post-fire regrowth (6 months–2.5 years since fire) along with sites of old habitat (>35 years since fire), (e.g. Crimson Rosella, Scarlet Robin, Sulphur-crested Cockatoo), while some ground-foraging species became scarce in dense new-growth vegetation that appears 2.5–10 years post fire (e.g. Australian Magpie, Laughing Kookaburra and White-winged Chough). Such species may deserve specific management strategies to maintain populations in forests where substantial areas are burnt by wildfire or planned burns, over short periods of time. The model for total bird abundance showed a significant fire frequency response with birds preferring sites twice burnt within 35 years (e.g. bark and canopy-foraging guilds). Four guilds demonstrated a preference for sites frequently burnt, increasing in abundance as number of burns increased (nectarivores, open-ground foragers, seeds in trees foragers, tall shrub foragers). In contrast, two species appeared to prefer sites that had experienced low fire frequencies, a response not common to their guilds. Laughing Kookaburra (carnivore) and White-winged Chough (forages on open ground among trees) generally declined in abundance with increasing fire frequency. © 2023 Elsevier B.V.
Bird responses to targeted revegetation : 40 years of habitat enhancement at Clarkesdale Bird sanctuary, central-western Victoria
- Loyn, Richard, Faragher, J. T., Coutts, D. C., Palmer, Grant
- Authors: Loyn, Richard , Faragher, J. T. , Coutts, D. C. , Palmer, Grant
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australian Field Ornithology Vol. 26, no. 3 (2009), p. 53-75
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: A program of planting Australian shrubs and trees has been conducted in degraded farmland at the Clarkesdale Bird Sanctuary (central-western Victoria) since the 1960s, to address the issue of declining native birds, as perceived by the late landowner Gordon Clarke. The shrubs and trees were selected to attract birds, and included many species that were not native to the region. This form of management is often practised by private landholders (at various scales), but its effects are rarely documented. Bird surveys were conducted for this study between 1999 and 2001 at 27 sites: 11 in native eucalypt forest on ridges and slopes, 13 in planted areas on ridges and slopes, and three in planted areas on river-flats and a small gully (with three supplementary sites in a pine plantation). Total bird abundance and species per count were highest in the planted sites on river-flats and gully, and higher in the planted sites on ridges and slopes than in native forest on similar topography. Honeyeaters (Meliphagidae), Superb Fairy-wrens Malurus cyaneus, open-country birds, seed-eating birds and five insectivorous guilds reached their maximum abundance in planted sites. Barkforaging insectivores, canopy-foraging insectivores, frugivores and a generalist insectivore were marginally more common in native forest than in planted sites. Introduced birds were uncommon. Generalised linear modelling showed that total bird abundance was positively related to the cover of planted native vegetation, native low shrubs and young wattles Acacia spp. and to the presence of indigenous Cherry Ballart Exocarpos cupressiformis. Various guilds showed positive relationships with the cover of planted native vegetation, native low shrubs, young wattles, original old wattles, original old eucalypts and trees with small or large hollows. The planting program has provided new habitat for many native forest birds. A greater challenge is to address the needs of some uncommon species that have declined locally, such as the Brown Treecreeper Climacteris picumnus and Speckled Warbler Chthonicola sagittata.
- Authors: Loyn, Richard , Faragher, J. T. , Coutts, D. C. , Palmer, Grant
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australian Field Ornithology Vol. 26, no. 3 (2009), p. 53-75
- Full Text:
- Reviewed:
- Description: A program of planting Australian shrubs and trees has been conducted in degraded farmland at the Clarkesdale Bird Sanctuary (central-western Victoria) since the 1960s, to address the issue of declining native birds, as perceived by the late landowner Gordon Clarke. The shrubs and trees were selected to attract birds, and included many species that were not native to the region. This form of management is often practised by private landholders (at various scales), but its effects are rarely documented. Bird surveys were conducted for this study between 1999 and 2001 at 27 sites: 11 in native eucalypt forest on ridges and slopes, 13 in planted areas on ridges and slopes, and three in planted areas on river-flats and a small gully (with three supplementary sites in a pine plantation). Total bird abundance and species per count were highest in the planted sites on river-flats and gully, and higher in the planted sites on ridges and slopes than in native forest on similar topography. Honeyeaters (Meliphagidae), Superb Fairy-wrens Malurus cyaneus, open-country birds, seed-eating birds and five insectivorous guilds reached their maximum abundance in planted sites. Barkforaging insectivores, canopy-foraging insectivores, frugivores and a generalist insectivore were marginally more common in native forest than in planted sites. Introduced birds were uncommon. Generalised linear modelling showed that total bird abundance was positively related to the cover of planted native vegetation, native low shrubs and young wattles Acacia spp. and to the presence of indigenous Cherry Ballart Exocarpos cupressiformis. Various guilds showed positive relationships with the cover of planted native vegetation, native low shrubs, young wattles, original old wattles, original old eucalypts and trees with small or large hollows. The planting program has provided new habitat for many native forest birds. A greater challenge is to address the needs of some uncommon species that have declined locally, such as the Brown Treecreeper Climacteris picumnus and Speckled Warbler Chthonicola sagittata.
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