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Animals
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Feral Birds and Urbanization
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Feral Birds and Urbanization

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Birds".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 8046

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Yanina Benedetti

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Community and Ecology Conservation Research Group, Department of Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, CZ-165 00 Prague 6, Czech Republic
Interests: biodiversity conservation; bird community; avian diversity; bird behavior; urban ecology; landscape ecology; ecosystem services; evolutionary ecology; agroecology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

Feral birds that escape from domestication are becoming self-sufficient and settling breeding populations in wild and urban areas (e.g., doves, parrots, and European starling). Several studies demonstrated the potential ability of feral birds to establish large populations and compete with native and endemic bird species (e.g., by taking food sources, destroying habitat, and nesting depletion). Thus, it has been postulated that feral birds play an important role in driving biotic homogenization and biodiversity loss in urbanized areas. Moreover, recent epidemiological studies showed that several diseases are broadly distributed among feral birds, threatening human health. Accordingly, there is an increasing interest in deeper and more valuable knowledge of feral birds for applying best management practices in urban areas.

This Special Issue is interested in novel research and review papers focusing on ecological, behavioral, biotic interactions, and physiological assessments of global feral bird species. The interest is also extensible to the effective management strategies to control and mitigate the feral bird populations and their harmful impact on native birds and human health.

Dr. Yanina Benedetti
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biotic homogenization
  • bird behavior
  • domestication process
  • feralization
  • invasive species
  • restoration
  • rewilding
  • urban management
  • zoonosis

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 2975 KiB  
Article
What Drives the Alien Parrot Richness and Occurrence in Urban Green Spaces along the Annual Cycle in Buenos Aires City, Argentina?
by Sebastián Martín Santiago, Nínive Paes Cavalcante and Lucas Matías Leveau
Animals 2023, 13(21), 3426; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13213426 - 06 Nov 2023
Viewed by 1285
Abstract
Biological invasions are often one of the main causes of global biodiversity loss. Parrots are among the most globally traded taxa and have successfully invaded urban areas. Studies analyzing alien parrot–habitat relationships are scarce in cities of the southern hemisphere. This study aims [...] Read more.
Biological invasions are often one of the main causes of global biodiversity loss. Parrots are among the most globally traded taxa and have successfully invaded urban areas. Studies analyzing alien parrot–habitat relationships are scarce in cities of the southern hemisphere. This study aims to determine habitat characteristics influencing exotic parrot species richness, presence, and composition in urban parks in Buenos Aires City and to analyze variations during breeding and non-breeding seasons. A total of 35 parks were sampled during the breeding season and the non-breeding season, and habitat variables at local and landscape scales were measured. Parrot species richness was positively associated with tree species richness and a shorter distance to the La Plata River throughout the year. During the non-breeding season, parrot species richness increased in parks with a higher abundance of tree genera such as Eugenia, Podocarpus, Olea, and Washingtonia. However, during the breeding season, parrot species richness decreased with increased environmental noise. Taxonomic richness was higher during the breeding season. The occurrence of different species and composition depended differentially on each variable, and it varied between seasons. Our findings suggest that exotic parrot richness and presence may be influenced not only by tree diversity and park proximity to green corridors but also by specific exotic tree species providing resources for the parrots. Future urban green space designs should prioritize native tree planting to support local biodiversity over exotic trees that benefit invasive bird species. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feral Birds and Urbanization)
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15 pages, 5278 KiB  
Article
Abundance of Non-Native Birds in the City: Spatial Variation and Relationship with Socioeconomics in a South American City
by Macarena Silva-Ortega, Catalina B. Muñoz-Pacheco and Nélida R. Villaseñor
Animals 2023, 13(11), 1737; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13111737 - 24 May 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1230
Abstract
Cities commonly support a high abundance of non-native species that can affect both wildlife and human health; however, their distribution across the urban environment and their relationship with socioeconomics are not well documented. Here, we map the abundance of three non-native birds in [...] Read more.
Cities commonly support a high abundance of non-native species that can affect both wildlife and human health; however, their distribution across the urban environment and their relationship with socioeconomics are not well documented. Here, we map the abundance of three non-native birds in a Latin American city—domestic pigeon (Columba livia f. domestica), house sparrow (Passer domesticus), and monk parakeet (Myiopsitta monachus)—and investigate the effect of socioeconomics on their abundance. We found that C. livia f. domestica exhibited a random distribution of abundance across the city but reached its greatest abundance in low-income areas. P. domesticus exhibited an aggregated distribution of abundance, being most abundant in the southern and western areas of the city and in low-income areas. M. monachus exhibited an aggregated distribution of abundance, being most abundant in the northeastern part of the city and reaching its greatest abundance in high-income areas. Low-income areas likely provide high abundance of food, shelter, and nesting sites for both C. livia f. domestica and P. domesticus, whereas high income areas have greater tree cover and larger trees in which M. monachus can build communal nests. Our study finds that the abundance of non-native birds varies across the city and between socioeconomic groups; therefore, targeted management is needed in different city zones to limit negative effects on native species and prevent zoonotic diseases. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feral Birds and Urbanization)
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10 pages, 1313 KiB  
Article
Uncovering the Effects of COVID-19 Mask Wearing on Bird Flight Initiation Distance in Urbanized Areas in the Southern Philippines
by Gerald Vince N. Fabrero, Leanne Jay S. Manceras, Angelo Rellama Agduma and Krizler Cejuela Tanalgo
Animals 2023, 13(8), 1289; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13081289 - 09 Apr 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2427
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant changes in public and human activities worldwide, including using masks and reducing human interaction. These changes have also affected wildlife behavior, especially in urban areas. However, there is limited understanding of the impact of COVID-19-related human activities, [...] Read more.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant changes in public and human activities worldwide, including using masks and reducing human interaction. These changes have also affected wildlife behavior, especially in urban areas. However, there is limited understanding of the impact of COVID-19-related human activities, mainly mask wearing, on the behavior of urban bird species. This case is intriguing in the Philippines, where COVID-19 restrictions and mask wearing have been more prolonged than in other countries. We studied two common urban bird species (Geopelia striata and Passer montanus) in Southcentral Mindanao, Philippines, to assess their response to mask wearing by examining their alert distance (AD) and flight initiation distance (FID). We found that birds had a reduced FID to mask wearing, but only significantly in G. striata (Zebra Doves) and not in P. montanus (Eurasian tree sparrow). The effect of the variables related to urbanization on FID was contrasting. For example, ambient noise increased bird vigilance while proximity to roads reduced bird FID in urbanized areas, but their effects were weaker compared to mask wearing. We conclude that mask wearing during the COVID-19 pandemic is a significant environmental element that alters bird escape responses in urban areas, and the effects may be species-specific. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feral Birds and Urbanization)
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16 pages, 1123 KiB  
Article
Spatial Overlap and Habitat Selection of Corvid Species in European Cities
by Farah Abou Zeid, Federico Morelli, Juan Diego Ibáñez-Álamo, Mario Díaz, Jiří Reif, Jukka Jokimäki, Jukka Suhonen, Marja-Liisa Kaisanlahti-Jokimäki, Gábor Markó, Raphaël Bussière, Marko Mägi, Piotr Tryjanowski, Theodoros Kominos, Antonia Galanaki, Nikos Bukas, Fabio Pruscini, Leszek Jerzak, Olaf Ciebiera and Yanina Benedetti
Animals 2023, 13(7), 1192; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13071192 - 29 Mar 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2285
Abstract
Understanding habitat and spatial overlap in sympatric species of urban areas would aid in predicting species and community modifications in response to global change. Habitat overlap has been widely investigated for specialist species but neglected for generalists living in urban settings. Many corvid [...] Read more.
Understanding habitat and spatial overlap in sympatric species of urban areas would aid in predicting species and community modifications in response to global change. Habitat overlap has been widely investigated for specialist species but neglected for generalists living in urban settings. Many corvid species are generalists and are adapted to urban areas. This work aimed to determine the urban habitat requirements and spatial overlap of five corvid species in sixteen European cities during the breeding season. All five studied corvid species had high overlap in their habitat selection while still having particular tendencies. We found three species, the Carrion/Hooded Crow, Rook, and Eurasian Magpie, selected open habitats. The Western Jackdaw avoided areas with bare soil cover, and the Eurasian Jay chose more forested areas. The species with similar habitat selection also had congruent spatial distributions. Our results indicate that although the corvids had some tendencies regarding habitat selection, as generalists, they still tolerated a wide range of urban habitats, which resulted in high overlap in their habitat niches and spatial distributions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feral Birds and Urbanization)
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