Conservation of Tropical Birds

by Sodhi, Navjot S.; Sekercioglu, Cagan H.; Barlow, Jos; Robinson, Scott K.

• ISBN13: 9781444334821
• ISBN10: 1444334824
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-05-06
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

Conservation of Tropical Birds has been written by four conservation biologists whose expertise spans all the tropical regions of the world. It is the first book to cover all the major issues in tropical bird conservation. Current problems faced by tropical bird conservationists are summarised and potential solutions outlined based on the results of case studies. Birds are key indicators of ecosystem health, and such a well-studied group of organisms, that they provide an excellent lens through which to examine global conservation problems caused by phenomena such as climate change, declines in ecosystem services, habitat loss, fires, overexploitation, and invasive species. Therefore, the book also provides an engaging synopsis of the general issues in conservation and the problems faced by other wildlife. This book will serve as an important resource and companion to all people interested in observing and conserving birds in the tropics and elsewhere.

Author Biography

Navjot S. Sodhi is a Professor at the National University of Singapore. He is an Editor of the journals Conservation Biology, Biological Conservation, and Tropical Conservation Science. He has written and edited several books on conservation in the tropics. agan H. Sekercioglu is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Biology, University of Utah. His work includes the compilation of the most comprehensive database on the ecology of the world's birds and he is among the most cited 1% of scientists of the past decade in ecology and environmental science. He received the 2008 Whitley Gold Award for grassroots conservation and was chosen as Turkey's 2010 Scientist of the Year. Jos Barlow is an RCUK Academic Fellow and Lecturer at Lancaster Universtiy, UK. He is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Applied Ecology and Conservation Letters. Scott K. Robinson is Ordway Professor of Ecosystem Conservation at the Florida Museum of Natural History. He has published more than 100 scientific papers on the ecology, behavior, and conservation of birds.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. viii
The State of Tropical Bird Biodiversity	p. 1
Imperiled bird biodiversity	p. 1
Drivers of endangerment	p. 4
The enigmatic	p. 24
Effects of Habitat Fragmentation on Tropical Birds	p. 27
Introduction	p. 27
Theoretical premises of fragmentation	p. 28
Area effects in tropical birds	p. 29
Edge effects	p. 31
Fragment isolation and the importance of connectivity	p. 36
Temporal change in forest fragments	p. 41
Conclusion	p. 43
Tropical Bird Extinctions	p. 45
Extinctions over time	p. 45
Extinction debt	p. 48
Are birds the most endangered taxa?	p. 49
Case studies of recent bird extinctions	p. 50
Drivers of extinctions	p. 54
Extinction vulnerability	p. 56
Ecosystem resonance of bird extinctions	p. 63
Extinction resistence	p. 64
Ecological Functions of Birds in the Tropics	p. 68
Birds as mobile links	p. 72
Seed dispersal	p. 72
Pollination	p. 84
Predation and pest control - insectivores	p. 90
Predation and pest control - raptors	p. 95
Scavenging	p. 99
Nutrient deposition	p. 104
Ecosystem engineers and other ecological actors	p. 106
Birds and humanity	p. 108
Fire and the Conservation of Tropical Birds	p. 109
Introduction	p. 109
irect effects of fire	p. 111
Indirect effects of fire and altered fire regimes	p. 111
Altered fire regimes in fire-dependent ecosystems	p. 113
Altered fire regimes in fire-sensitive ecosystems	p. 116
Interaction between fires and other threats to tropical birds	p. 120
Managing fire for bird conservation	p. 122
Birds and post-fire regeneration	p. 124
Conclusion	p. 125
Biotic Invasions and Tropical Birds	p. 126
Effects of invasive species on tropical birds	p. 126
Avian invasions	p. 136
Pathology of avian invasions	p. 138
Tropical avian invaders	p. 141
Management of avian invaders	p. 147
Harvesting of Tropical Birds	p. 152
The volume of bird extraction	p. 152
Utilization of birds	p. 156
Effects of harvesting on birds	p. 164
Sustainable harvesting	p. 167
Curtailing the bird harvesting and trade	p. 170
Climate Change Effects on Tropical Birds	p. 173
Future projections and models	p. 174
Where will climate change hit?	p. 177
Protected areas	p. 182
Effects of life history	p. 182
Mobility and migration	p. 185
Evolution	p. 186
Interspecific interactions and indirect effects	p. 187
Deadly synergies	p. 189
Seasonality in tropics	p. 191
Lack of knowledge	p. 193
Conclusion	p. 194
Conservation of Migratory Birds in the Tropics	p. 195
Migration - an imperiled phenomenon	p. 195
The natural history of migratory birds	p. 199
Conservation problems faced by migratory birds in the tropics	p. 206
Towards a comprehensive strategy for migratory bird conservation	p. 211
Conservation Prospects for Tropical Birds	p. 213
Protection and triage	p. 214
Bird conservation in human-dominated landscapes	p. 220
Population augmentation	p. 221
Livelihoods and bird conservation	p. 222
Education and capacity building	p. 224
Enhancing knowledge of tropical birds	p. 226
References	p. 227
Index	p. 287
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