BIRD COMMUNITY DIFFERENCES IN MATURE AND SECOND GROWTH GARÚA FOREST IN MACHALILLA NATIONAL PARK, ECUADOR

Species monitoring for conservation planning is aided by understanding speciesi sensitivities to habitat change or loss. We studied bird communities in garua forest, a type of low elevation tropical cloud forest in western Ecuador and Peru that is threatened by land conversion. We used mist-nets and strip counts to compare bird communities in second growth and mature garua forest at Machalilla National Park, Ecuador. During the two wet and two dry seasons of 1999 and 2000, we recorded 159 bird species. In 1950 h of mist netting, we captured 729 individuals of 85 species. Over 60% of the species were unique to either second growth or mature forest. Species richness of birds was greater in second growth than in mature garua forest for reasons apparently unrelated to abundance or diversity of food resources. Generalist insectivore species, dry forest endemic birds, and Neotropical migrants readily used second growth forest, while mature garua forest species were absent or significantly less abundant. Three endemic and endangered species, Henna-hooded Foliage-gleaner (Hylocryptus erythrocephalus), Ochre-bellied Dove

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