Effects of fragmentation and landscape matrix on the nesting success of grassland birds in the Pampas grasslands of Argentina

The loss of grasslands in southeastern South America has negatively affected grassland birds, leading to marked declines in their populations. However, the extent to which habitat transformation impacts on their reproductive performance, and whether the magnitude of these effects may be modulated by...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Pretelli, Matías Guillermo, Isacch, Juan Pablo, Cardoni, Daniel Augusto
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2015
País:Argentina
Institución:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
Repositorio:CONICET Digital (CONICET)
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/37964
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/11336/37964
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Cortaderia Selloana
Hymenops Perspicillatus
Pseudoleistes Virescens
Brood Parasitism
Nest Predation
Nest Survival
South America
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1.6
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1
Descripción
Sumario:The loss of grasslands in southeastern South America has negatively affected grassland birds, leading to marked declines in their populations. However, the extent to which habitat transformation impacts on their reproductive performance, and whether the magnitude of these effects may be modulated by landscape matrices, is unknown. We assessed the effect of fragmentation on grassland bird reproduction by comparing the combined influence of fragmentation and landscape matrix on nesting success, brood parasitism and productivity of the Spectacled Tyrant Hymenops perspicillatus and the Brown-and-yellow Marshbird Pseudoleistes virescens. Surveys were undertaken in small grassland patches embedded within different landscape matrices (urban and agro-ecosystem) and in a large patch within a reserve. Reproductive performance was adversely affected by fragmentation. However, these effects were conditioned by matrix type, and the response was not the same for the two species. For Brown-and-yellow Marshbird, fragmentation resulted in higher rates of brood parasitism and lower productivity regardless of the matrix type, whereas for Spectacled Tyrant, we found a negative effect only in an agricultural matrix. The lack of extensive grasslands makes small patches important; however, knowing the effects of different matrix types is critical to predicting the conservation value of grassland patches, and the response of different species is not uniform.