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Effects of landscape, conspecifics and heterospecifics on habitat selection by breeding farmland birds: the case of the Calandra Lark (Melanocorypha calandra) and Corn Bunting (Emberiza calandra)

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Abstract

The aim of habitat selection studies is to understand the effect of the different factors affecting the spatial distribution of individuals. Within this framework, the aim of this study was to evaluate the relative contributions of landscape features and conspecific and heterospecific interactions to habitat selection by two sympatric species, the Calandra Lark Melanocorypha calandra and the Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra, during the breeding season. During the 2008 breeding season, the population of both species was censused in three Central Spanish locations by means of transects (N = 58). A model-averaging approach was used to determine the weight and effect of landscape and interaction variables in each species’ habitat selection using abundance as the dependent variable. Deviance partitioning was used to determine the unique and shared contributions of these two sets of variables to the variation explained by the models. Calandra Lark was positively associated with mean field size, which reflects its preference for relatively simplified landscapes with a low density of field margins and, consequently, small land-use diversity. Corn Bunting selected areas with high land-use diversity, namely, a highly heterogeneous landscape with a high density of field margins. Attraction between conspecifics was found in both cases. Calandra Lark seems to negatively respond to the proximity of Corn Buntings, which indicates a partitioning of space and food resources. However, Corn Bunting responded positively to the proximity of Calandra Larks, which reflects a higher tolerance of Corn Buntings to the presence of other species nearby. Deviance partitioning showed that interactions were more important for Calandra Lark, while Corn Bunting was equally affected by both components. An appropriate management should combine the requirements of both species to achieve effective conservation at the bird assemblage level.

Zusammenfassung

Die Auswirkungen von Landschaftstyp, sowie Präsenz von Artgenossen und Andersartigen auf die Habitatwahl brütender Offenlandarten am Beispiel der Kalanderlerche ( Melanocorypha calandra ) und der Grauammer ( Emberiza calandra )

Studien zur Habitatwahl untersuchen die Wirkung verschiedener Faktoren auf die räumliche Verteilung von Individuen. Diese Studie befasst sich mit dem relativen Einfluss verschiedener Landschaftstypen, sowie der Wechselbeziehung mit gleichartigen und andersartigen Vögeln, auf die Habitatwahl zweier sympatrischer Arten, der Kalanderlerche und der Grauammer. Während der Brutsaison 2008 wurde die Populationsgröße beider Arten in drei zentralspanischen Gebieten in 58 Transekten erhoben. Durch Model-Averaging wurde die Auswirkung und Gewichtung der Landschafts- und Interaktions-Variablen in der Habitatwahl der beiden Arten bestimmt, wobei Populationsgröße als abhängige Variable benutzt wurde. Anhand von Deviance Partition wurden die einzigartigen und gemeinsamen Beiträge dieser beiden Variablensets an der Variation, die durch das Modell erklärt wurde, bestimmt. Die Habitatwahl der Kalanderlärche hing positiv mit der mittleren Feldgröße zusammen, was auf eine Vorliebe für relativ einfache Landschaften mit geringer Dichte von Ackergrenzen und demzufolge einheitlicher Landnutzung hindeutet. Grauammern wählten Gebiete mit großer Vielfalt in der Landnutzung, d. h. sehr heterogene Landschaften mit hoher Dichte von Ackergrenzen. In beiden Arten zogen Artgenossen einander an. Die Kalanderlerche schien negativ auf die Nähe der Grauammer zu reagieren, die eine Konkurrenz für Lebensraum und Futter darstellt. Andererseits reagierte die Grauammer positiv auf das Vorkommen von Kalanerlerchen. Dies deutet auf eine höhere Toleranz der Grauammer auf die Nähe anderer Arten hin. Deviance Partition zeigte, dass Interaktionen mit anderen Vögeln mehr Einfluss auf die Habitatwahl von Kalanderlärchen haben, während die Grauammer von beiden getesteten Komponenten gleichermaßen beeinflusst wurde. Um einen effektiven Schutz der Vogelgemeinschaft zu gewährleisten, sollten daher die Bedürfnisse beider Arten in Schutzmaßahmen berücksichtigt werden.

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Acknowledgments

This work derives from M.Sc. studies at the UAM Master in Ecology by M.A.S. T. Pärt, P. Donald, P. Acebes, I. Guerrero, J. Seoane and C.P. Carmona also provided constructive comments and helped with the statistical analysis. The study is a contribution to the CGL/2009/13029/BOS project, financed by the Spanish Ministry of Science, and to the REMEDINAL S-2009/AMB 1783 project of the Comunidad de Madrid.

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  1. Miguel A. Sanza

    Present address: Doñana Biological Station CSIC, C/Américo Vespucio, s/n, 41092, Seville, Spain

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Terrestrial Ecology Group (TEG), Department of Ecology, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, C/Darwin, 2, 28049, Madrid, Spain

    Miguel A. Sanza, Juan Traba, Manuel B. Morales, Desirée Rivera & M. Paula Delgado

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  1. Miguel A. Sanza
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Correspondence to M. Paula Delgado.

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Communicated by T. Gottschalk.

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Sanza, M.A., Traba, J., Morales, M.B. et al. Effects of landscape, conspecifics and heterospecifics on habitat selection by breeding farmland birds: the case of the Calandra Lark (Melanocorypha calandra) and Corn Bunting (Emberiza calandra). J Ornithol 153, 525–533 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-011-0773-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-011-0773-3

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