The avifauna of the forest mosaic habitats of the Mariarano region, Mahajanga II district, north-west Madagascar

Authors

  • Rachel Palfrey Operation Wallacea
  • Jack Baddams Operation Wallacea
  • Bruno Raveloson Operation Wallacea
  • Solohery Rasamison
  • Fionn Ó Marcaigh The University of Dublin
  • Jamie Neaves Operation Wallacea
  • Peter Long University of Oxford
  • Thomas Martin Operation Wallacea

Keywords:

birds, endemic, Madagascar, inventory, dry forest

Abstract

Background: The West Malagasy dry forests support numerous endemic species and experience heavy anthropogenic pressures, yet remain very poorly studied. Further research is required to understand species distributions and overall diversity in these threatened forest ecosystems.

Objectives: We aimed to provide a description of the avifaunal community of a particular dry forest, Mariarano forest, north-western Madagascar, as well as other habitats that are heavily integrated with these Forests. The study site possesses a highly endemic bird community and is under severe environmental pressure, but remains poorly explored.

Method: We compiled all records from a 9-year (2010–2018) bird survey data set (the most extensive compiled from a Madagascan dry forest to date), which yielded data from a combination of point count and mist-netting protocols. This was further supplemented by approximately 4384 h of opportunistic observation effort.

Results: In total, 95 species were detected, including 63 regional endemics (66.3% of all species), 2 local endemics and 7 Threatened or Near-Threatened species.

Conclusion: We highlight the forest mosaic habitats of Mariarano as a potential new Important Bird Area, given the regional importance of its endemic avifauna.

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Author Biographies

Rachel Palfrey, Operation Wallacea

Conservation, Education and Research Department, Operation Wallacea, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom

Jack Baddams, Operation Wallacea

Conservation, Education and Research Department, Operation Wallacea, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom

Bruno Raveloson, Operation Wallacea

Conservation, Education and Research Department, Operation Wallacea, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom

Fionn Ó Marcaigh, The University of Dublin

Department of Zoology, The University of Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Trinity Centre for Biodiversity Research, Trinity College Dublin, The University of Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

Jamie Neaves, Operation Wallacea

Conservation, Education and Research Department, Operation Wallacea, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom

Peter Long, University of Oxford

Oxford Long‐Term Ecology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom

Thomas Martin, Operation Wallacea

Conservation, Education and Research Department, Operation Wallacea, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom

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Published

2019-10-24

How to Cite

Palfrey, R. ., Baddams, J. ., Raveloson, B. ., Rasamison, S. ., Ó Marcaigh, F. ., Neaves, J. ., … Martin, T. . (2019). The avifauna of the forest mosaic habitats of the Mariarano region, Mahajanga II district, north-west Madagascar. Bothalia, African Biodiversity & Conservation, 49(1). Retrieved from https://abcjournal.org/index.php/BothaliaABC/article/view/36

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Section

Original research, Reviews, Strategies, Case studies