Bird diversity in summer in Anqing floodplain wetlands,middle-lower reaches of the Yangtze River

Abstract

Lake wetlands are important habitats for birds.Wetland birds are considered as the key indicator of lake ecosystems.It is important to understand the relationship between wetland bird diversity and its ecological factors.We investigated 7 major lakes in Anqing floodplain wetlands,middle-lower reaches of the Yangtze River,during July-August,2011.A total of 82 species of birds were found belonging to 14 orders and 35 families,of which resident birds accounted for 32.9%,summer migrators accounted for 45.1%,waterfowls accounted for 34.6%.Carnivore,insectivore and Omnivore made up 30.5%,30.5% and 23.2% of the total birds,respectively.Dominant species in the wetlands were Chlidonias hybridus,Nyticorax nyticorax,Sturnus sericeus,Garrulax perspicillatus,Passer montanus and Hirundo rustica.Among the 7 lakes,Huangda Lake ranked first in bird diversity index and species richness(H=2.123,S=50).Baidang Lake ranked last in bird diversity index and species richness(H=1.918,S=28).The species richness and diversity showed a positive relation to lake size,and a negative relation to disturbance density,respectively.From the view of bird diversity protection,we suggested taking steps to reclaim farmland to lakes and recover the vegetation in the lakes for increasing vegetation cover,wetland size and habitat types.