Influence of characteristics of irrigation channels on the breeding bird community of a wetland zone in southeast of Spain

The “El Hondo Nature Park” is mainly composed of a series of irrigation channels and water reservoirs, subjected to various regimes of management as well as reed and vegetation control, thus creating a great variety of habitats and situations. To determine the influence of these habitats and management regimes on the local bird community, a set of characteristics of these channels and their surrounding area were analysed with a Correspondence Analysis (CA). The degree of reed development in channels and the presence in the surroundings of orchards and other reed formations were the most decisive factors to explain the probability of occurrence of reed birds and waterbirds, as well as bird species richness and abundance. Other bird species were not directly influenced by channel variables, but only by those of surrounding land uses.

Ethnobotanic importance of plants used in pigeon-breeding in Eastern Spain

Background: The importance that birds of the Columbidae family have had throughout history is visible on the Mediterranean coast. Pigeon fancying is the art of breeding and training carrier pigeons and currently, several breeds exist. The sport of racing pigeons consists in covering a distance at maximum possible speed. However, pigeon breeding has another modality called “sport pigeon”, where several males follow a female. This study focusses on ethnobotanical knowledge of native and exotic plant species that are used for diet, breeding, stimulation, healing illnesses and staining the plumage of pigeons bred in captivity. Methods: Using semi-structured interviews, we gathered information about the different plant species traditionally used for pigeon-breeding in the region of Valencia. Background material on remedies for bird illnesses was gathered from folk botanical references, local books and journals. The plant species were collected in the study area, then identified in the laboratory using dichotomous keys and vouchered in the ABH (Herbarium of Alicante University). We used Excel ® 2003 to perform a simple statistical analysis of the data collected. Results: We collected 56 species of plants (and one variety) that included 29 botanical families. The total number of species was made up of 35 cultivated and 21 wild plants. The most common were Gramineae (14 species), Leguminosae (6 species), and Compositae (4 species). Conclusions: Pigeon breeding is an immensely popular activity in Eastern Spain, and ethnobiological knowledge about breeding pigeons and caring for them is considerable. The names and traditional uses of plants depend on their geographical location, vernacular names serve as an intangible heritage. Feeding, environmental features, and genetic makeup of individuals are relevant aspects in the maintenance of avian health.

Irrigation canals in a semi-arid agricultural landscape surrounded by wetlands: Their role as a habitat for birds during the breeding season

Traditional water supply systems in semi-arid agrarian ecosystems, mainly irrigation canals, contribute to the diversity of the landscape and influence the composition of species. To evaluate their effect on bird communities in the breeding season, we selected a rural area in southeastern Spain, where an intricate and extensive network of irrigation canals and cultivated areas is located between two wetlands declared as Natural Parks. Birds were counted at representative points distributed throughout the canal network at which we recorded several variables related to the physical features, the vertical and horizontal structure of associated vegetation, reed development (Phragmites australis) and land use in the neighboring areas. We detected 37 bird species, most of which were also breeding in the wetlands nearby. We used Hierarchical Partitioning analyses to identify the variables most strongly related to the probability of the presence of selected species and species richness. Vegetation cover and height close to the canals, together with reed development, were the most important types of variables explaining species presence and richness. We found that current management practices for reeds in canals are not well-suited for biodiversity conservation. We therefore propose alternatives that could be implemented in the area in cooperation with stakeholders.

Seasonal differences in migration patterns of a soaring bird in relation to environmental conditions: a multi-scale approach

Many studies suggest that migratory birds are expected to travel more quickly during spring, when they are en route to the breeding grounds, in order to ensure a high-quality territory. Using data recorded by means of Global Positioning System satellite tags, we analysed at three temporal scales (hourly, daily and overall journey) seasonal differences in migratory performance of the booted eagle (Aquila pennata), a soaring raptor migrating between Europe and tropical Africa, taking into account environmental conditions such as wind, thermal uplift and day length. Unexpectedly, booted eagles showed higher travel rates (hourly speed, daily distance, overall migration speed and overall straightness) during autumn, even controlling for abiotic factors, probably thanks to higher hourly speeds, more straight routes and less non-travelling days during autumn. Tailwinds were the main environmental factor affecting daily distance. During spring, booted eagles migrated more quickly when flying over the Sahara desert. Our results raise new questions about which ecological and behavioural reasons promote such unexpected faster speeds in autumn and not during spring and how events occurring in very different regions can affect migratory performance, interacting with landscape characteristics, weather conditions and flight behaviour.