Development of a bird integrity index: using bird assemblages as indicators of riparian condition |
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Authors: | Bryce Sandra A Hughes Robert M Kaufmann Philip R |
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Institution: | (1) Dynamac Corporation, 200 SW 35th St., Corvallis, Oregon 97333, USA, US;(2) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th St., Corvallis, Oregon 97333, USA, US |
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Abstract: | We describe the development of a bird integrity index (BII) that uses bird assemblage information to assess human impacts
on 13 stream reaches in the Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA. We used bird survey data to test 62 candidate metrics representing
aspects of bird taxonomic richness, tolerance or intolerance to human disturbance, dietary preferences, foraging techniques,
and nesting strategies that were affected positively or negatively by human activities. We evaluated the metric responsiveness
by plotting each one against a measure of site disturbance that included aspects of land use/land cover, road density, riparian
cover, and stream channel and substrate conditions. In addition, we eliminated imprecise and highly correlated (redundant)
metrics, leaving 13 metrics for the final index. Individual metric scores ranged continuously from 0 to 10, and index scores
were weighted to range from 0 to 100. Scores were calibrated using historical species information to set expectations for
the number of species expected under minimally disturbed conditions. Site scores varied from 82 for the least disturbed stream
reach to 8.5 for an urban site. We compared the bird integrity index site scores with the performance of other measures of
biotic response developed during this study: a fish index of biointegrity (IBI) and two benthic macroinvertebrate metrics.
The three assemblages agreed on the general level of disturbance; however, individual sites scored differently depending on
specific indicator response to in-stream or riparian conditions. The bird integrity index appears to be a useful management
and monitoring tool for assessing riparian integrity and communicating the results to the public. Used together with aquatic
indicator response and watershed data, bird assemblage information contributes to a more complete picture of stream condition. |
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Keywords: | : Aquatic monitoring Riparian ecosystem condition Stream assessment Index of biotic integrity Bioassessment Riparian birds Disturbance |
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