Abstract:
This study was carried out to investigate the effects of anthropogenic disturbance on bird diversity, abundance and distribution in Tara Gedam Forest. It was conducted from August 2019 to February 2020 during wet and dry seasons. The study area was stratified based on disturbance level and vegetation structure by using topographic map and preliminary survey. Three forest habitat gradients: edge forest, intermediate forest, interior forest micro-habitats were considered. Stratified random sampling technique and point count method were employed for all forest micro-habitats. A total of 20 sampling plots were randomly selected. Bird data were collected in the morning from 6:30 AM to 10:00 AM and afternoon 4:00 PM and 6:30 PM. A Chi-square test, diversity indices and Simpson’s Similarity Index methods were employed for bird data analysis. The human disturbance data were visually estimated for each bird sampling blocks. Vegetation structures: density and diameter at breast height of trees and shrubs were recorded in randomly located 20 m x 20 m quadrants inside the bird sampling blocks and their correlations with bird abundance were obtained by using Pearson correlation test. A total of 96 avian species belonging to 15 orders and 37 families were identified. One endemic to Ethiopia and eight species endemic to both Ethiopia and Eritrea were recorded. The highest avian diversity was observed in interior forest (H’w=3.77, H’d=3.70) and the least was in the edge forest (H’w=3.36, H’d=3.29). Simpson’s Similarity Index showed that highest bird species similarity was observed between interior forest and intermediate forest parts during both wet (0.73) and dry(0.69) seasons. There was a strong positive correlation between bird abundance and tree/shrub density (r = 0.916), and diameter at breast height as well (r = 0.787) revealed strong positive relationship. The distribution of birds between habitat classes was statistically significantly different during the wet season and dry season (χ2= 1184.33, df =196, p< 0.001) and (χ2=447.16, df=142, p<0.001), respectively. Availability of food, water and nesting sites were the major challenges for bird distribution and occurrence. Destruction of forest through free grazing, crop cultivation, road construction, charcoal production and firewood collection were the main anthropogenic activities observed in the Tara Gedam forest.
Keywords/phrase: Anthropogenic disturbances, Bird abundance, Bird diversity, Tara Gedam Forest.