Abstract:
Birds are an important component of biodiversity in urban ecosystems. The present study was
carried out from April to October 2021 comprising dry and wet seasons. The objective of the
current study was to investigate the composition, diversity, relative abundance and habitat
association of avifauna in Gondar city. Based on the land scape, four habitat types were
selected. Both point and line transect count methods were employed to record the avian
species. Diversity and species similarity of birds were determined using the Shannon-Weiner
diversity and Simpson’s similarity indexes. Chi-square test, independent t-test and one way ANOVA were used to analyze data. Survey on avifauna was taken twice a day (morning (6:30
and 10:00 am) and afternoon (3:30 to 6:00)). A total of 113 bird species belonging to 15
orders and 46 families were recorded. Five species were intra-African migrants, seven were
Palearctic migrants, one endemic species, 12 were endemics shared with Eritrea, and 101
were resident species. Passeriformes was the dominant Order of birds with the highest
number of Families (n=23) and Species (n=59). The species richness of birds in the four
habitats varied during the dry and wet seasons. Ninety three avian species were recorded
during both seasons, but six species were recorded only in dry season and fourteen species
were recorded only during the wet season. The mean number of individuals observed varied
among habitats and it was statistically significant (F= 17.79, df = 3, p = 0.000). The
differences among habitats had a significant effect on the abundance of birds. The riverine
habitat has the highest value of species diversity (H’=3.95) while the lowest (H’=3.31)
diversity was recorded in the waste dump site. The highest (E=0.91) even distribution was
observed in the waste dump site while the lowest (E=0.81) evenness in the residential habitat
during both seasons. Simpson’s similarity index was the highest (SI=0.79) between patch
forest and residential habitats during both the wet and dry seasons. Gondar city is a refuge
for a variety of avian species including globally threatened and endemics species. Different
bird species occupied different habitats in the study area due to different resource
availability and disturbance status. Conservation priority area in the city should get attention
and long-term studies of avian species with association of changing landscapes should be
needed to conserve the birding area in the city for ecotourism development. The ecotourism
office and wildlife department should give attention for the conservation works on avian
species in the city