Dynamic multi-species occupancy models reveal individualistic habitat preferences in a high-altitude grassland bird community.

ABSTRACT: Moist, high-altitude grasslands of eastern South African harbour rich avian diversity and endemism. This area is also threatened by increasingly intensive agriculture and land conversion for energy production. This conflict is particularly evident at Ingula, an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area located within the least conserved high-altitude grasslands and which is also the site of a new Pumped Storage Scheme. The new management seeks to maximise biodiversity through manipulation of the key habitat variables: grass height and grass cover through burning and grazing to make habitat suitable for birds. However, different species have individual habitat preferences, which further vary through the season. We used a dynamic multi-species occupancy model to examine the seasonal occupancy dyn

SUBMITTER: Maphisa DH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6378914 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature