Treeline ecotones shape the distribution of avian species richness and functional diversity in south temperate mountains.

ABSTRACT: Mountains produce distinct environmental gradients that may constrain or facilitate both the presence of avian species and/or specific combinations of functional traits. We addressed species richness and functional diversity to understand the relative importance of habitat structure and elevation in shaping avian diversity patterns in the south temperate Andes, Chile. During 2010-2018, we conducted 2202 point-counts in four mountain habitats (successional montane forest, old-growth montane forest, subalpine, and alpine) from 211 to 1,768 m in elevation and assembled trait data associated with resource use for each species to estimate species richness and functional diversity and turnover. We detected 74 species. Alpine specialists included 16 species (22%) occurring only above treeline wit

SUBMITTER: Altamirano TA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7595238 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature