Work

A diet perspective on the impact of the COVID ‐19 lockdown on urban bird assemblages

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: The COVID‐19 pandemic, which significantly altered human activities, particularly in urban areas, presented a unique opportunity to explore the dynamics of wildlife–human coexistence. In this study, we conducted bird counts in 36 parks in Poznań, Poland, before (2019) and during (2020) the pandemic lockdown, and assessed the impact of lockdown‐induced changes in human activity on the presence of birds with different diet type in the city. We found a notable decrease in the occurrence of granivorous and waste‐feeding birds in urban areas during the pandemic, but the presence of birds feeding mainly on other food sources remained relatively unchanged. This study provides initial evidence of a cross‐species and diet type‐related decline in bird diversity in urban parks during the COVID‐19 pandemic.

Source: Ibis

DOI: 10.1111/ibi.13372

Authors: Patrycja K. Woszczyło, Peter Mikula, Łukasz Jankowiak, Anna Ondrejková, Piotr Tryjanowski

Institutions: Poznań University of Life Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Technical University of Munich, University of Szczecin, University of Veterinary Medicine in Košice

Language: English

Topic: Avian ecology and behavior

Subfield: Ecology

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Sustainable cities and communities, Life on land

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,270