Collaborative Research: Forest fragmentation and climate change result in understory warming that adversely affects tropical avian biodiversity at the BDFFP.

合作研究：森林破碎化和气候变化导致林下变暖，对 BDFFP 的热带鸟类生物多样性产生不利影响。

• 批准号: 2311047
• 负责人: David Luther
• 金额: $ 9.05万
• 依托单位: George Mason University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-07-01 至 2025-06-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2311047&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Forest; fragmentation; climate

Tropical birds are in trouble, especially those that eat mostly insects. Population declines are taking place in both large and small areas of forest, although at a faster rate in small forests or “fragments”. Exposure to sun along the edges of fragments causes their interior to become hotter and drier, which reduces habitat quality for many birds. Scientists do not know exactly how warmer and drier conditions cause trouble for birds, but they think it is due to less food and more stress. In this study, researchers will study whether longer and hotter dry seasons are responsible for the decline of birds in continuous forests and which species are most susceptible to changes in climate. To do this, they will collect physiological data and combine it with climate data from the past forty years to understand the relative role of climate and forest condition on birds’ diet, health and survival. Results will improve our understanding of how forest loss and climate change affect birds, and ways in which we might mitigate the loss of biodiversity. The PIs posit that remnant bird communities in forest fragments are a precursor of future bird assemblages in continuous forest. Increased physiological stress and/or dietary specialization are likely determinants of avian survival and reproductive success under global change. This project has three objectives: (1) Assess the impact of climate change as the primary driver of long-term bird declines in continuous forest at the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragmentation Project (BDFFP) through the inclusion of 40 years of climate and bird banding data in a series of survival models. (2) Determine the interactive effects of climate change and fragmentation on the viability of bird populations at BDFFP through demographic modeling. (3) Measure how dietary and behavioral specialization of model bird species (two experiencing declines: Turdus albicollis and Willisornis poecilinotus, and two experiencing population growth: Calyptorhynchus spirurus and Pithys albifrons) interact with variation in understory microclimates to affect fitness. Researchers will measure diet using a combination of eDNA and isotopic niche analysis (from fecal samples, feathers, and toe nails) and stress using a combination of B-OH butyrate, triglyceride, and corticosterone, across seasons and between continuous and fragmented forests. Results will yield mechanistic insights into the role that niche specialization and understory drying play in driving demographic responses of tropical birds to forest fragmentation and climate change.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

热带鸟类遇到了麻烦，尤其是那些主要以昆虫为食的鸟类，无论是大面积还是小面积的森林，其数量都在下降，尽管小森林或“碎片”边缘的阳光照射导致它们的数量下降。室内变得更加炎热和干燥，这降低了许多鸟类的栖息地质量。科学家们并不清楚温暖和干燥的环境如何给鸟类带来麻烦，但他们认为这是由于食物减少和压力增加所致。无论更长、更热的旱季是连续森林中鸟类数量减少的原因，为了做到这一点，他们将收集生理数据并将其与过去四十年的气候数据相结合，以了解相对情况。气候和森林条件对鸟类饮食、健康和生存的作用将提高我们对森林消失和气候变化如何影响鸟类的理解，以及我们如何减轻生物多样性的丧失。森林碎片是未来鸟类组合的先驱在连续的森林中，增加的生理压力和/或饮食专业化可能是全球变化下鸟类生存和繁殖成功的决定因素。该项目有三个目标：（1）评估气候变化作为长期鸟类数量下降的主要驱动因素的影响。森林破碎化项目 (BDFP) 的连续森林通过将 40 年的气候和鸟类环带数据纳入一系列生存模型中 (2) 确定气候变化和破碎化对森林的交互影响。通过人口统计模型评估 BDFFP 鸟类种群的生存能力 (3) 测量模式鸟类的饮食和行为专业化（两种正在经历数量下降：白颈鸫和威利索尼斯鸟，以及两种正在经历种群增长：Calyptorhynchus spirurus 和 Pithys albifrons）如何与变化相互作用。研究人员将结合 eDNA 和同位素生态位分析（来自粪便样本、结果将产生关于生态位专业化和林下干燥在驱动热带鸟类对森林破碎化和气候变化的人口反应中所发挥的作用的机械见解。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和气候变化进行评估，被认为值得支持。更广泛的影响审查标准。