Title: THE EDGE EFFECT AND ECOTONAL SPECIES: BIRD COMMUNITIES ACROSS A NATURAL EDGE IN SOUTHEASTERN AUSTRALIA
Abstract: EcologyVolume 83, Issue 11 p. 3048-3059 Regular Article THE EDGE EFFECT AND ECOTONAL SPECIES: BIRD COMMUNITIES ACROSS A NATURAL EDGE IN SOUTHEASTERN AUSTRALIA Jack Baker, Jack Baker Institute for Conservation Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2522, Australia Present address: Biodiversity Research and Management Division, New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 1967, Hurstville, NSW 2220, AustraliaSearch for more papers by this authorKris French, Kris French Institute for Conservation Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2522, AustraliaSearch for more papers by this authorRobert J. Whelan, Robert J. Whelan Institute for Conservation Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2522, Australia Author to whom correspondence should be addressedSearch for more papers by this author Jack Baker, Jack Baker Institute for Conservation Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2522, Australia Present address: Biodiversity Research and Management Division, New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 1967, Hurstville, NSW 2220, AustraliaSearch for more papers by this authorKris French, Kris French Institute for Conservation Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2522, AustraliaSearch for more papers by this authorRobert J. Whelan, Robert J. Whelan Institute for Conservation Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales 2522, Australia Author to whom correspondence should be addressedSearch for more papers by this author First published: 01 November 2002 https://doi.org/10.1890/0012-9658(2002)083[3048:TEEAES]2.0.CO;2Citations: 65 Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Abstract Ecotones have been considered as unique environments, and the concepts of edge effect and ecotonal species have been widely used, especially in avian community ecology. We studied the patterns of bird densities across heath–wood edges at replicated sites in three locations in southeastern Australia. Multivariate analysis showed that the bird community in the ecotone was intermediate between the heath and wood communities, indicating that the ecotone contained a mixing of species rather than a unique bird community. ANOVA showed a modest increase in bird density at the wood side of the ecotone, which may be partly due to sampling biases rather than to some inherent habitat value in the ecotone. The outstanding pattern was that bird density and species richness in the wood habitat were twice as high as in the heath habitat. Of a total of 86 species, 31 occurred in sufficient numbers to categorize according to their habitat association (generalist, or heath or wood specialist) and their density at the ecotone (ecotone neutral, ecotone shy, or ecotone conspicuous). Three of these were habitat-generalist–ecotone-neutral. Fourteen species were ecotone neutral but were habitat specialists on either the wood (13 spp.) or the heath (1 sp.). Three species were ecotone shy. Although 11 species were ecotone conspicuous, they also occurred in either heath or wood or both. Thus, no species could be categorized as entirely ecotonal. We conclude that there is little evidence from this or other studies of avian communities to support an edge effect of increased density and species richness, and no evidence of entirely ecotonal species. Citing Literature Supporting Information Filename Description https://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.3297695 Research data pertaining to this article is located at figshare.com: Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article. Volume83, Issue11November 2002Pages 3048-3059 RelatedInformation