Impacts of urbanisation on the native avifauna of Perth, Western Australia

Abstract

Urban development either eliminates, or severely fragments, native vegetation, and therefore alters the distribution and abundance of species that depend on it for habitat. We assessed the impact of urban development on bird communities at 121 sites in and around Perth, Western Australia. Based on data from community surveys, at least 83 % of 65 landbirds were found to be dependent, in some way, on the presence of native vegetation. For three groups of species defined by specific patterns of habitat use (bushland birds), there were sufficient data to show that species occurrences declined as the landscape changed from variegated to fragmented to relictual, according to the percentage of vegetation cover remaining. For three other groups (urban birds) species occurrences were either unrelated to the amount of vegetation cover, or increased as vegetation cover declined. In order to maximise the chances of retaining avian diversity when planning for broad-scale changes in land-use (i.e. clearing native vegetation for housing or industrial development), land planners should aim for a mosaic of variegated urban landscapes (>60 % vegetation retention) set amongst the fragmented and relictual urban landscapes (<60 % vegetation retention) that are characteristic of most cities and their suburbs. Management actions for conserving remnant biota within fragmented urban landscapes should concentrate on maintaining the integrity and quality of remnant native vegetation, and aim at building awareness among the general public of the conservation value of remnant native vegetation.

Appendix

List of species mentioned in the text ordered according to species groups and their food preferences (taxonomy according to Christidis and Boles 2008) (* = species once common on Swan Coastal Plain, now scarce or extinct there according to Storr and Johnstone 1988) (** = migrant).

Species Groups	Food
	Vertebrates	Seed	Invertebrates	Nectar	Fruit	Omnivore
Previously common*
Red-eared Firetail Stagonopleura oculata		■
Brush Bronzewing Phaps elegans		■
Painted Button Quail Turnix varia		■
Rufous Treecreeper Climacteris rufa			■
Restless Flycatcher Myiagra inquieta			■
Western Whipbird Psophodes nigrogularis			■
Yellow-plumed Honeyeater Lichenostomus ornatus				■
Bush Stone-curlew Burhinus grallarius						■
Emu Dromaius novaehollandiae						■
Bushland Group
Common Bronzewing Phaps chalcoptera		■
Red-capped Parrot Purpureicephalus spurius		■
Splendid Fairy-wren Malurus splendens			■
Yellow-rumped Thornbill Acanthiza chrysorrhoa			■
Scarlet Robin Petroica multicolor			■
White-browed Scrubwren Sericornis frontalis			■
Inland Thornbill Acanthiza apicalis			■
Western Thornbill Acanthiza inornata			■
Grey Shrike-thrush Colluricincla harmonica			■
Tree Martin Hirundo nigricans			■
Rainbow Bee-eater Merops ornatus **			■
New Holland Honeyeater Phylidonyris novaehollandiae				■
Western Spinebill Acanthorhynchus superciliosus				■
Western Wattlebird Anthochaera lunulata				■
Tree Group
Grey Butcherbird Cracticus torquatus	■		■
Galah Cacatua roseicapillus		■
Grey Fantail Rhipidura fuliginosa			■
Striated Pardalote Pardalotus striatus			■
Weebill Smircornis brevirostris			■
Western Gerygone Gerygone fusca			■
Rufous Whistler Pacycephala rufiventris			■
Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike Coracina novaehollandiae			■
Park Group
Willie Wagtail Rhipidura leucophrys			■
Magpie-lark Grallina cyanoleuca			■
Welcome Swallow Hirundo neoxena			■
White-cheeked Honeyeater Phylidonyris nigra				■
Rarely-Recorded Group
Black-shouldered Kite Elanus axillaris	■
Whistling Kite Haliastur sphenurus	■
Little Eagle Hieraaetus morphnoides	■
Brown Goshawk Accipiter fasciatus	■
Collared Sparrowhawk Accipiter cirrhocephalus	■
Australian Hobby Falco longipennis	■
Nankeen Kestrel Falco cenchroides	■		■
Sacred Kingfisher Todiramphus sanctus **	■		■
Grey Currawong Strepera versicolor	■		■
Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus banksii		■
Carnaby’s Black-Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus latirostris		■
Regent Parrot Polytelis anthopeplus		■
Western Rosella Platycercus icterotis		■
Elegant Parrot Neophema elegans		■
Pallid Cuckoo Cuculus pallidus **			■
Fan-tailed Cuckoo Cacomantis flabelliformis **			■
Horsfield’s Bronze-Cuckoo Chrysococcyx basalis **			■
Shining Bronze-Cuckoo Chrysococcyx lucidus **			■
Varied Sittella Daphoenositta chrysoptera			■
Variegated Fairy-wren Malurus lamberti			■
White-winged Fairy-wren Malurus leucopterus			■
Spotted Pardalote Pardalotus punctatus			■
Red-capped Robin Petroica goodenovii			■
Western Yellow Robin Eopsaltria griseogularis			■
Golden Whistler Pachycephala pectoralis			■
White-winged Triller Lalage suerii **			■
Black-faced Woodswallow Artamus cinereus			■
Dusky Woodswallow Artamus cyanopterus			■
Yellow-throated Miner Manorina flavigula				■
White-naped Honeyeater Melithreptus lunatus				■
Tawny-crowned Honeyeater Phylidonyris melanops				■
Mistletoebird Dicaeum hirundinaceum					■
Generalist Group
Australian Ringneck Barnardius zonarius		■
Red Wattlebird Anthochaera carunculata				■
Brown Honeyeater Lichmera indistincta				■
Australian Magpie Gymnorhina tibicen						■
Australian Raven Corvus coronoides						■
Silvereye Zosterops lateralis						■
Urban Specialist
Singing Honeyeater Lichenostomus virescens				■