Effects of landscape composition and configuration on Andean birds are influenced by spatial scale

Abstract

Land use change is impacting biodiversity worldwide with outcomes that may vary according to landscape characteristics which operate on different spatial scales. We evaluated the influence of landscape configuration and composition at scales of 100 and 500 m on bird species richness and occupancy of functional groups (diet, body size, elevational ranges) in the tropical Andes of southern Ecuador. Surveys were conducted at 57 sites with varying degrees of land-use change, and data were analyzed using Bayesian multi-species occupancy models. The results indicate a negative relationship between farmland extent and both bird species richness and the presence of certain functional groups (e.g., frugivores) across spatial scales. The presence of native forest also emerges as a significant predictor of the occupancy of different functional groups, but only at the larger spatial scale. Furthermore, configurational features like density had a positive association with species richness, particularly at the smaller scale. Our research reveals that landscape composition and configuration can positively or negatively influence avian diversity depending on the spatial scale. Understanding how bird diversity and occupancy vary across different spatial scales can offer valuable insights for effective conservation in human-influenced landscapes.