An artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of Red-wattled Lapwing in the Arabian Desert
Various animal species worldwide use artificial environments for reproduction, a suitable alternative to dwindling native habitats. An artificial lake system established in the core zone of the Al Marmoom Desert Conservation Reserve, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, primarily intended for recreational p...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Resilience Alliance
2021-12-01
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| Series: | Avian Conservation and Ecology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.ace-eco.org/vol16/iss2/art20/ |
| _version_ | 1797967967660539904 |
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| author | Esmat E. M. Elhassan Martin SládeÄek Saoud Badaam KateÅina Brynychová Petr Chajma Veronika Firlová Veronika Janatová Vojtěch Kubelka Lucie PeÅ¡ková Eva Vozabulová Aisha Almuhery Miroslav Å álek |
| author_facet | Esmat E. M. Elhassan Martin SládeÄek Saoud Badaam KateÅina Brynychová Petr Chajma Veronika Firlová Veronika Janatová Vojtěch Kubelka Lucie PeÅ¡ková Eva Vozabulová Aisha Almuhery Miroslav Å álek |
| author_sort | Esmat E. M. Elhassan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Various animal species worldwide use artificial environments for reproduction, a suitable alternative to dwindling native habitats. An artificial lake system established in the core zone of the Al Marmoom Desert Conservation Reserve, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, primarily intended for recreational purposes, assists wildlife to cope with water shortages and the extreme hot climate of the Arabian Desert. This area potentially opens up conflicts between recreational use and wildlife welfare. The Red-wattled Lapwing (Vanellus indicus aigneri) is a spreading Asian shorebird tightly linked to water resources and tolerant of human disturbance. We analyzed the habitat use and reproductive success of this species, following 361 nests and 373 chicks in 2018 and 2019 to reveal the breeding potential of the Reserve. The occurrence of lapwings dropped sharply at a distance of 500 m from the lakes, regardless of vegetation cover and desert type. In addition, nest site choice strongly reflected the proximity of water within the core lakes area. The Lapwings bred preferentially on islands built in the centers of the lakes, where they started breeding earlier in the season. They had a lower nest predation rate on islands than on the surrounding mainland, but the chicks grew slightly more slowly on islands, probably due to lower food availability. However, survival of island and mainland chicks was similar. We conclude that the shallow shores of lakes with islands make the area suitable for breeding of the Lapwing in the Arabian desert, despite extensive recreational use and constant human disturbance. This study shows an example of combining appropriate landscape design with benefits for humans and current support for wildlife conservation. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T02:38:31Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0afd1f8e71e840ffa7bcc73bca30ea08 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1712-6568 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T02:38:31Z |
| publishDate | 2021-12-01 |
| publisher | Resilience Alliance |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Avian Conservation and Ecology |
| spelling | doaj.art-0afd1f8e71e840ffa7bcc73bca30ea082023-01-02T19:24:17ZengResilience AllianceAvian Conservation and Ecology1712-65682021-12-01162201978An artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of Red-wattled Lapwing in the Arabian DesertEsmat E. M. Elhassan0Martin SládeÄek1Saoud Badaam2KateÅina Brynychová3Petr Chajma4Veronika Firlová5Veronika Janatová6Vojtěch Kubelka7Lucie PeÅ¡ková8Eva Vozabulová9Aisha Almuhery10Miroslav Å álek11Natural Resources Conservation Section, Environment Department, Dubai Municipality, Abu Hail, Dubai, United Arab EmiratesFaculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 160 00 Prague, Czech RepublicNatural Resources Conservation Section, Environment Department, Dubai Municipality, Abu Hail, Dubai, United Arab EmiratesFaculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 160 00 Prague, Czech RepublicFaculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 160 00 Prague, Czech RepublicFaculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 160 00 Prague, Czech RepublicFaculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 160 00 Prague, Czech RepublicDepartment of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Alfred Denny Building, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, United KingdomFaculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 160 00 Prague, Czech RepublicFaculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 160 00 Prague, Czech RepublicNatural Resources Conservation Section, Environment Department, Dubai Municipality, Abu Hail, Dubai, United Arab EmiratesFaculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcka 129, 160 00 Prague, Czech RepublicVarious animal species worldwide use artificial environments for reproduction, a suitable alternative to dwindling native habitats. An artificial lake system established in the core zone of the Al Marmoom Desert Conservation Reserve, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, primarily intended for recreational purposes, assists wildlife to cope with water shortages and the extreme hot climate of the Arabian Desert. This area potentially opens up conflicts between recreational use and wildlife welfare. The Red-wattled Lapwing (Vanellus indicus aigneri) is a spreading Asian shorebird tightly linked to water resources and tolerant of human disturbance. We analyzed the habitat use and reproductive success of this species, following 361 nests and 373 chicks in 2018 and 2019 to reveal the breeding potential of the Reserve. The occurrence of lapwings dropped sharply at a distance of 500 m from the lakes, regardless of vegetation cover and desert type. In addition, nest site choice strongly reflected the proximity of water within the core lakes area. The Lapwings bred preferentially on islands built in the centers of the lakes, where they started breeding earlier in the season. They had a lower nest predation rate on islands than on the surrounding mainland, but the chicks grew slightly more slowly on islands, probably due to lower food availability. However, survival of island and mainland chicks was similar. We conclude that the shallow shores of lakes with islands make the area suitable for breeding of the Lapwing in the Arabian desert, despite extensive recreational use and constant human disturbance. This study shows an example of combining appropriate landscape design with benefits for humans and current support for wildlife conservation.https://www.ace-eco.org/vol16/iss2/art20/chick survivalhabitat selectionnest predationpopulation dynamicsred-wattled lapwingshorebirdswetland conservation |
| spellingShingle | Esmat E. M. Elhassan Martin SládeÄek Saoud Badaam KateÅina Brynychová Petr Chajma Veronika Firlová Veronika Janatová Vojtěch Kubelka Lucie PeÅ¡ková Eva Vozabulová Aisha Almuhery Miroslav Å álek An artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of Red-wattled Lapwing in the Arabian Desert Avian Conservation and Ecology chick survival habitat selection nest predation population dynamics red-wattled lapwing shorebirds wetland conservation |
| title | An artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of Red-wattled Lapwing in the Arabian Desert |
| title_full | An artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of Red-wattled Lapwing in the Arabian Desert |
| title_fullStr | An artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of Red-wattled Lapwing in the Arabian Desert |
| title_full_unstemmed | An artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of Red-wattled Lapwing in the Arabian Desert |
| title_short | An artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of Red-wattled Lapwing in the Arabian Desert |
| title_sort | artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of red wattled lapwing in the arabian desert |
| topic | chick survival habitat selection nest predation population dynamics red-wattled lapwing shorebirds wetland conservation |
| url | https://www.ace-eco.org/vol16/iss2/art20/ |
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