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43 results for “Mixed-species flocks”
Data and code for: Behavioral plasticity shapes participation in a mixed-species flocking community of birds
<p>Behavioral plasticity can modulate the costs and benefits of sociality, and thus may play a prominent role in mediating competition and facilitation during social interactions in mixed-species groups. However, investigations of assembly patterns of mixed-species groups typically treat species' behavioral attributes as static rather than dynamic features that can change in social contexts. We investigate four axes of behavioral plasticity that may modulate interaction within mixed-species groups: 1) species' selective preference for joining certain groups, 2) species' ability to flexibly change their behavior in response to groupmates' behavior, and 3) shifts and/or 4) expansions of species' niche occupancy when foraging with conspecifics versus when foraging with heterospecifics. We assess variation in these axes of behavioral plasticity in an Australian mixed-species avian community. All species had selective preferences for flocks of certain strata, and some flexibly matched their flockmates' foraging strata. Three species exhibited patterns of niche shift, and one species showed niche expansion. These findings suggest that species converge in strata in mixed-species flocks despite the potential for increased competition and emphasize that species can plastically react to changes in their social environment in numerous ways. Acknowledgment of such plasticity is likely integral to understanding the nuances of heterospecific interactions.</p>
Resources and seasonality drive the composition of mixed-species bird flocks along an elevational gradient in the Himalaya
<p><span>Mixed-species bird flocks are cohesive networks of interacting insectivorous bird species that benefit from reduced predation risk and/or enhanced resource access. We studied how species' propensity to participate in mixed flocks, and the number and strength of interspecific associations within flocks, changed along elevational (low, mid, high) and seasonal (winter, spring) gradients in the western Himalaya. We expected species to have high propensities, and greater number and strength of interspecific associations when resources are scarce, and to decline when resources are abundant. We first used species occurrence within and outside mixed flocks to calculate species-specific flocking propensity and then performed network analyses to quantify the proportion of realized interspecific associations (network density) and their strength (weighted degree), using an abundance-based null model to control flocking species' availability. Further, we quantified arthropod prey availability in winter by using a branch bagging technique. Insect availability and arthropod diversity decreased with increasing elevation in winter and species' flocking propensities, network densities and weighted degrees increased with elevation, possibly to benefit from facilitative interactions that increase foraging success. In spring, as more resources become available and/or bird start investing more time in breeding, flocking propensities, network densities and species' weighted degrees declined at all elevations when compared with winter. During resource-scarce periods, species might find solitary foraging prohibitive because of reduced resource access and costs of vigilance therefore leading to the formation of networks of facilitative associations.</span></p>
Data and code for: Behavioral plasticity shapes participation in a mixed-species flocking community of birds
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Resources and seasonality drive the composition of mixed-species bird flocks along an elevational gradient in the Himalaya
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Patch size and vegetation structure drive changes to mixed-species flock diversity and composition across a gradient of fragment sizes in the Western Andes of Colombia
<p>This data set represents a series of 502 mixed-species bird flock compositions, and derived taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity indices, that were gathered along a gradient of forest fragment sizes (range = 10-173 ha) in the Colombian Western Andes. We sampled mixed-species flocks using transect surveys along 14 transects in 8 fragments and a continuous forest reference site in the same landscape and at the same elevation (~1900-2200 m.a.s.l.). We also used buffer analysis to quantify the proportion of forest cover and forest edge within 1 km of each transect, and calculated local vegetation density and complexity, as well as distance from edge, for each 100-meter transect segment (<em>n</em> = 70 segments). Flock composition data observed on a transect were used to calculate overall species richness and flock size as well as two indices of functional and phylogenetic diversity; we calculated the stadardized effect size (SES) of each measure to account for the correlation between these measures and species richness. We also provide the raw counts of each species for each flock composition. These data were used for the analyses in Jones and Robinson (2020). </p>
Data for: Neotropical mixed-species bird flocks in a community context
<p>Mixed-species flocks are an important component of bird communities, particularly in the Neotropics, where flocks reach their highest diversity. The extent to which mixed-species flocks represent unique functional or ecological roles within communities, and how these attributes change over environmental gradients, however, is not well understood. We use a trait-based approach to examine functional aspects of flocking assemblages as they relate to those observed in the larger avian community across a 3000 m elevational gradient. Our results reveal similar ecological strategies among flocking species and the communities in which they occur, at the scale of the regional pool and across elevations. Trait variation in flocking and non-flocking assemblages is structured along two major axes defined by size- and resource-related traits. The trait space occupied by flocking species, however, represents only half (51%) that of the larger community. Similarly, the trait space of flocks across elevations is restricted compared to non-flocking species. The shared trait space across flock types represents small-bodied invertivores foraging in lower forest strata, traits associated with increased vulnerability to predation. The concentration of flocking species in functional trait space suggests high niche packing and either more overlap in ecological strategies or more finely divided niches relative to non-flocking species.</p>
Data from: Network structure of avian mixed-species flocks decays with elevation and latitude across the Andes
<p><span>B</span><span>irds in mixed-species flocks benefit from greater foraging efficiency and reduced predation but also face costs related to competition and activity matching. Because this cost-benefit trade-off is context-dependent (e.g., abiotic conditions, habitat quality), the structure of flocks is expected to vary along elevational, latitudinal, and disturbance gradients. Specifically, we predicted that the connectivity and cohesion of flocking networks would (1) decline towards tropical latitudes and lower elevations, where competition and activity matching costs are higher, and (2) increase with lower forest cover and greater human disturbance. We analysed the structure of 84 flock networks across the Andes and assessed the effect of elevation, latitude, forest cover and human disturbance on network characteristics. We found that Andean flocks are overall open-membership systems (unstructured), though the extent of network structure varied across gradients. Elevation was the main predictor of structure, with more connected and less modular flocks upslope. As expected, flocks in areas with higher forest cover were less cohesive, with better-defined flock subtypes. Flocks also varied across latitude and disturbance gradients as predicted, but effect sizes were small. Our findings indicate that the unstructured nature of Andean flocks might arise as a strategy to cope with harsh environmental conditions.</span></p>
Data for: Neotropical mixed-species bird flocks in a community context
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Patch size and vegetation structure drive changes to mixed-species flock diversity and composition across a gradient of fragment sizes in the Western Andes of Colombia
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Seasonal changes in mixed-species bird flocks and anti-predator information
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Data from: Network structure of avian mixed-species flocks decays with elevation and latitude across the Andes
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Functional trait table for mixed-species flocking birds in the Western Andes of Colombia
<p>These data represent functional traits relevant to the foraging ecology and habitat preferences of mixed-species flock joining bird species from the Western Andes of Colombia. We collected these data based on published data for the species from the <em>Handbook of the Birds Alive</em> online database (del Hoyo et al. 2020), supplemented with additional natural history references were available, with the objective of calculating the functional richness contained in mixed-species flock compositions sampled across a patch size gradient of subtropical forest fragments in the Serriania de los Paraguas, Valle del Cauca department, Colombia. We tabulated foraging data from 99 bird species observed at least once in a mixed-species flock, including body mass, nest type and clutch size, relative use of four different diet categories, use of different foraging attack maneuvers, foraging substrates, and elevational strata within the forest. We used these data in Jones and Robinson (2020) to calculate the Functional Richness and Functional Dispersion indices for each flock composition.</p>
Data from: Positive relationships between association strength and phenotypic similarity characterize the assembly of mixed-species bird flocks worldwide
Competition theory predicts that communities at small spatial scales should consist of species more dissimilar than expected by chance. We find a strikingly different pattern in a multi-continent dataset (55 presence-absence matrices from 24 locations) on the composition of mixed-species bird flocks, important subunits of local bird communities the world over. Using null models and randomization tests followed by meta-analysis, we find the association strength of species in flocks to be strongly related to similarity in body size and foraging behavior, and higher for congeneric compared with non-congeneric species pairs. Given the small spatial scale of our individual analyses, differences in habitat preferences of species are unlikely to have caused these association patterns; therefore, the patterns are most likely the outcome of species interactions. Extending group-living and social information use theory to a heterospecific context, we discuss potential behavioral mechanisms leading to positive interactions among similar species in flocks as well as ways in which competition costs are reduced. Our findings highlight the need to consider positive interactions along with competition when seeking to explain community assembly.
Data from: Does mixed-species flocking influence how birds respond to a gradient of land-use intensity?
Conservation biology is increasingly concerned with preserving interactions among species such as mutualisms in landscapes facing anthropogenic change. We investigated how one kind of mutualism, mixed-species bird flocks, influences the way in which birds respond to different habitat types of varying land-use intensity. We use data from a well-replicated, large-scale study in Sri Lanka and the Western Ghats of India, in which flocks were observed inside forest reserves, in 'buffer zones' of degraded forest or timber plantations, and in areas of intensive agriculture. We find flocks affected the responses of birds in three ways: (i) species with high propensity to flock were more sensitive to land use; (ii) different flock types, dominated by different flock leaders, varied in their sensitivity to land use and because following species have distinct preferences for leaders, this can have a cascading effect on followers' habitat selection; and (iii) those forest-interior species that remain outside of forests were found more inside flocks than would be expected by chance, as they may use flocks more in suboptimal habitat. We conclude that designing policies to protect flocks and their leading species may be an effective way to conserve multiple bird species in mixed forest and agricultural landscapes.
Data from: The response of mixed-species bird flocks to anthropogenic disturbance and elevational variation in southwest China
Avian mixed-species flocks (MSFs) are an important example of species interactions threatened by the biodiversity crisis. They are found throughout the world in forested habitats, but are generally reduced in size or frequency by human disturbance. In southern China, a unique MSF system has been described that is led by fulvettas (Alcippe morrisonia, A. hueti and A. davidi). Our objective was to understand how this system is distributed across elevational gradients, especially moving west into the Hengduan Mountains, and how it responds to human disturbance. We sampled leadership and composition of 375 MSFs over 2 years in and surrounding 5 nature reserves in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and Yunnan Province, with transects placed in different land use types – protected forest, buffer areas, or agriculture – and ranging from 400 to 3200 m. We also sampled birds outside of MSFs. We found MSFs led by fulvettas (A. fratercula and A. davidi) in forests across the region up to 2900 m. Elevation was not a significant influence on MSF size or prevalence in models that also included land use. We found that MSFs were encountered at only 1/3 of the frequency in agriculture as in forest, and had strongly different composition and leadership. Although MSFs in buffer areas more similar to those in forest, birds in buffer had lower flocking propensity with different flock leaders and less complex social networks. In particular, buffer transects that were seeded pine had low numbers of fulvetta-led MSFs and forest specialists. In the future, it is important to understand which vegetational characteristics allow MSFs, particularly fulvetta-led MSFs, to persist in buffer habitats.
Data from: Multicontinental community phylogenetics of avian mixed-species flocks reveal the role of the stability of associations and of kleptoparasitism
If understood as a way to forage socially without incurring intra-specific competition for mates or other resources, mixed-species foraging flocks are predicted to be composed of functionally similar species. In the most intensively studied mixed-species foraging system, understory forest birds, relevant functional traits are however extremely difficult to measure and best replaced by phylogenetic relatedness. A multicontinental analysis of flock phylogenetic structure revealed departures from the expected phylogenetic clustering. Long-lasting associations (> one day) were phylogenetically overdispersed, indicating that these associations are affected by competitive exclusion or by mutualistic interactions. However, where kleptoparasites occurred, this effect disappeared completely, as expected if the dilution of kleptoparasitism risk compensated competition between related species. Mixed-species flocks should not be analyzed as a homogeneous phenomenon.
Data from: What can mixed-species flock movement tell us about the value of Amazonian secondary forests? insights from spatial behavior
The value of secondary forest for rainforest species remains an important question for conservation in the 21st century. Here, we describe the spatial behavior of understory mixed-species flocks in a heterogeneous landscape in central Amazonia. Understory mixed-species flocks represent a diverse, highly organized component of the rich Amazonian avifauna. We recorded movements within 26 flock home ranges in primary forest, secondary forest, interfaces between forest types, and forest fragments. We describe frequency and movement orientation in relation to forest edges, movement patterns and proportion of use between secondary and primary forest, the relation between home range sizes and vegetation height, and home range configuration. Flocks visited only a small portion of forest edges, and showed a tendency for moving parallel to edges next to less-developed secondary forest. Movement patterns in secondary forests did not show significant differences compared to primary forests. Time spent in secondary forests increased in proportion to mean canopy height. Flocks were consistently present in secondary forests where vegetation height averaged over 15 m, but home ranges were nearly twice as large compared to primary forest. Home range limits tended to be aligned with disturbed vegetation, essentially rearranging a territorial configuration normally adjusted by topography. The spatial behavior of this important subset of the Amazonian avifauna shows that secondary forests are tolerated above a certain development threshold, but perceived as sub optimal habitat until canopy height closely matches primary forests.
Data for: Interspecific competition and facilitation coexist in mixed-species bird flocks of montane coniferous forests in Taiwan
<p><span>Besides competition, positive interactions also play an important role in shaping the social structure of mixed-species bird flocks. This study aimed to illuminate the interspecific interactions of competition and facilitation in mixed-species bird flocks. We recorded the foraging behavior and microhabitat use of flocking species in montane coniferous forests of Taiwan under different social contexts. Foraging niche breadth and niche-overlap with other flocking species were compared between individuals inside and outside of mixed flocks. For the three microhabitat variables (foraging locations, vertical strata, and horizontal strata), relationships between niche-overlaps of heterospecific pairs of these flocking species and their corresponding interspecific associations were determined using a simple linear regression. While in mixed flocks, two understory species, Taiwan Fulvetta <em>Fulvetta formosana</em> and Yellowish-bellied Bush-Warbler <em>Horornis acanthizoides</em>, shifted their foraging from shrubs upwards into coniferous trees. Meanwhile, Flamecrests (<em>Regulus goodfellowi</em>) moved downwards vertically within the canopy, and Black-throated Tits (<em>Aegithalos concinnus</em>) spread out horizontally along branches. In addition, Flamecrests applied many more sally-hovers inside of mixed flocks than outside of flocks. All four species are insectivores which might find it more difficult to obtain sufficient food during the colder winters when food resources become scarcer. Therefore, they may be using the increased vigilance afforded by the flock to expand their foraging niches and thus to increase their foraging opportunities inside mixed flocks. Furthermore, niche-overlaps of heterospecific pairs of the 11 common flocking species were positively correlated with their corresponding interspecific associations on all three microhabitat variables. These results indicate that a greater foraging niche-overlap between two flocking species would result in higher coexistence of the two species in mixed flocks. Consequently, facilitative interactions occurred in these mixed-species flocks in addition to competitive interactions.</span></p>
Data from: Temperature and vegetation complexity structure mixed-species flocks along a gradient of elevation in the tropical Andes
<p>Mixed-species flocks constitute community modules that can help test mechanisms driving changes to community composition across environmental gradients. Here, we examined elevational patterns of flock diversity (species richness, taxonomic diversity, species and guild composition) and asked if these patterns were reflections of the full bird community at a given elevation (open-membership hypothesis), or if they were instead structured by environmental variables. We surveyed both the overall avian community and mixed-species flocks across an undisturbed elevational gradient (~1350 – 3550 m) in the Bolivian Andes. We then tested for the role of temperature (a surrogate for abiotic stress), resource diversity (arthropods, fruits) and foraging niche diversity (vegetation vertical complexity) in structuring these patterns. Patterns for the overall and flocking communities were similar, supporting our open-membership hypothesis that Andean flocks represent dynamic, unstructured aggregations. Membership openness and the resulting flock composition, however, also varied with elevation in response to temperature and vegetation complexity. We found a mid-elevation peak in flock species richness, size, and Shannon's diversity at ~2300 m. The transition of flocking behavior towards a more open-membership system at this elevation may explain a similar peak in the proportion of insectivores joining flocks. At high elevations, increasing abiotic stress and decreasing fruit diversity led more generalist, gregarious tanagers (Thraupidae) to join flocks, resulting in larger yet more even flocks alongside a loss of vegetation structure. At lower elevations, flock species richness increased with greater vegetation complexity, but a greater diversity of foraging niches resulted in flocks that were more segregated into separate canopy and understory sub-types. This segregation likely results from increased costs of interspecific competition and activity matching (i.e., constraints on movement and foraging rate) for insectivores. Mid-elevation flocks (~2300 m) seemed, therefore, to benefit from both the open-membership composition of high-elevation flocks and the high vegetation complexity of mid- and low-elevation forests.</p>
Figure 2 in Patterns of species participation across multiple mixed-species flock types in a tropical forest in northeastern India
Figure 2. Body mass distribution of participant species of three mixed-species flock types. "Large-bodied" flocks are composed of species that are significantly larger than species comprising "Understorey" flocks. Both these flocks are understorey–midstorey foraging flocks.
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