Changes in the Habitat Preference of Crested Ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) during a Period of Rapid Population Increase
The number of breeding pairs of crested ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) in Hanzhong, China has recovered remarkably from 2 to 511 from 1981 to 2019. Although the crested ibis has been closely monitored, the habitat preference of the bird has not been well studied despite the extensive incr...
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MDPI AG
2021-09-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/9/2626 |
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| author | Liming Ma Xinhai Li Tianqing Zhai Yazu Zhang Kai Song Marcel Holyoak Yuehua Sun |
| author_facet | Liming Ma Xinhai Li Tianqing Zhai Yazu Zhang Kai Song Marcel Holyoak Yuehua Sun |
| author_sort | Liming Ma |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The number of breeding pairs of crested ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) in Hanzhong, China has recovered remarkably from 2 to 511 from 1981 to 2019. Although the crested ibis has been closely monitored, the habitat preference of the bird has not been well studied despite the extensive increase in abundance. We used nest site data from the past 39 years and 30 environmental variables to develop species distribution models for each year. We applied random forest to select important environmental variables, and used logistic regressions to quantify the changes in habitat preferences in 39 years, taking into account the effects of interaction and quadratic terms. We found that six variables had strong impacts on nest site selection. The interaction term of rice paddies and waterbodies, and the quadratic term of precipitation of the wettest quarter of the year were the most important correlates of nest presence. Human impact at nest sites changed from low to high as birds increased their use of ancestral habitats with abundant rice paddies. We concluded that during the population recovery, the crested ibises retained their dependence on wetlands, yet moved from remote areas to populated rural regions where food resources had recovered due to the ban of pesticide use. |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T07:58:18Z |
| publishDate | 2021-09-01 |
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| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-a41ee21fb8c149c681855173d8f0ba402023-11-22T11:43:01ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152021-09-01119262610.3390/ani11092626Changes in the Habitat Preference of Crested Ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) during a Period of Rapid Population IncreaseLiming Ma0Xinhai Li1Tianqing Zhai2Yazu Zhang3Kai Song4Marcel Holyoak5Yuehua Sun6School of Life Sciences, Hebei University, 180 Wusi East Road, Baoding 050024, ChinaKey Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1-5 Beichen West Road, Beijing 100101, ChinaShaanxi Hanzhong Crested Ibis National Nature Reserve, Hanzhong 723300, ChinaShaanxi Hanzhong Crested Ibis National Nature Reserve, Hanzhong 723300, ChinaKey Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1-5 Beichen West Road, Beijing 100101, ChinaDepartment of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, 1 Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, USAKey Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1-5 Beichen West Road, Beijing 100101, ChinaThe number of breeding pairs of crested ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) in Hanzhong, China has recovered remarkably from 2 to 511 from 1981 to 2019. Although the crested ibis has been closely monitored, the habitat preference of the bird has not been well studied despite the extensive increase in abundance. We used nest site data from the past 39 years and 30 environmental variables to develop species distribution models for each year. We applied random forest to select important environmental variables, and used logistic regressions to quantify the changes in habitat preferences in 39 years, taking into account the effects of interaction and quadratic terms. We found that six variables had strong impacts on nest site selection. The interaction term of rice paddies and waterbodies, and the quadratic term of precipitation of the wettest quarter of the year were the most important correlates of nest presence. Human impact at nest sites changed from low to high as birds increased their use of ancestral habitats with abundant rice paddies. We concluded that during the population recovery, the crested ibises retained their dependence on wetlands, yet moved from remote areas to populated rural regions where food resources had recovered due to the ban of pesticide use.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/9/2626animal conservationhabitat preferenceinteraction effectsmodel selectionnest sitewetland |
| spellingShingle | Liming Ma Xinhai Li Tianqing Zhai Yazu Zhang Kai Song Marcel Holyoak Yuehua Sun Changes in the Habitat Preference of Crested Ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) during a Period of Rapid Population Increase Animals animal conservation habitat preference interaction effects model selection nest site wetland |
| title | Changes in the Habitat Preference of Crested Ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) during a Period of Rapid Population Increase |
| title_full | Changes in the Habitat Preference of Crested Ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) during a Period of Rapid Population Increase |
| title_fullStr | Changes in the Habitat Preference of Crested Ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) during a Period of Rapid Population Increase |
| title_full_unstemmed | Changes in the Habitat Preference of Crested Ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) during a Period of Rapid Population Increase |
| title_short | Changes in the Habitat Preference of Crested Ibis (<i>Nipponia nippon</i>) during a Period of Rapid Population Increase |
| title_sort | changes in the habitat preference of crested ibis i nipponia nippon i during a period of rapid population increase |
| topic | animal conservation habitat preference interaction effects model selection nest site wetland |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/9/2626 |
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