Work

Aquatic areas enhance the positive effects of urban and forests on avian diversity across multiple scales

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Rapid urbanization is reshaping landscapes worldwide, yet how different land-use types and their interactions influence biodiversity across spatial and temporal scales remains insufficiently understood. In this study, we examined the effects of individual landscape components and their combinations on bird species richness and abundance across three spatial scales (300 m × 300 m, 900 m × 900 m and 1500 m × 1500 m) and three temporal scales (annual, dry season, and rainy season) in a rapidly urbanizing biodiversity hotspot in southwest China. Bird communities were surveyed in 160 grid cells from July 2023 to June 2024, and generalized linear models were applied to assess landscapes effects on bird diversity. The results showed that across all three spatial scales, increases in the area proportion of a certain type of landscape generally had negative effects on bird diversity. By contrast, landscape mosaics that incorporate aquatic areas (both natural and artificial) were found to significantly enhance both species richness and abundance at every examined scale. Notable examples are the aquatic&urban, aquatic&forest, and aquatic&farmland pairings. Moreover, the positive effects of these combinations were stronger for species richness than for abundance. The influence of landscapes on bird diversity also varied seasonally and even shows opposite effects across spatial scales. Our findings confirm that the impacts of urbanization on biodiversity are strongly spatial- and temporal-scale dependent. In the future, the scale effects must be taken into account to enhance the comparability of the conclusions drawn from different studies. Furthermore, this study highlights the critical role of environmentally friendly aquatic landscapes in mitigating biodiversity loss and advocate their inclusion as key structural elements in multi-scales urban and regional planning.

Source: Basic and Applied Ecology

DOI: 10.1016/j.baae.2026.08.001

Authors: Na Li, Zi-Chang Liu, Zi-Wen Shui, Ting-Lu Duan, Kun Tan, Wen Xiao

Institution: Dali University

Language: English

Topic: Avian ecology and behavior

Subfield: Ecology

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Life on land, Sustainable cities and communities

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,800