Estimating the habitat potential of inland forest patches for birds using a species–area curve model

Abstract

Estimating the habitat potential of inland forest patches for birds requires the modeling of species–area relationships, or relationships between habitat size and numbers of bird species in each patch. The accurate estimation of species–area relationships significantly reduces the effort required to recognize the number of species living in each patch. The objective of this study was to estimate the relationship between forest patch size and bird species diversity in Dangjin County, in northwest South Korea, based on the sizes of inland forest patches. KOMPSAT-2 images were obtained and ortho-rectified to construct a map of the target forest patches. The numbers of birds per patch were surveyed four times: August 2008, September 2008, February 2009 and May 2009. Regression models were derived to explain the relationships between the numbers of bird species and patch size. A model that was derived using data from all four observation periods had the highest coefficient of determination (R 2). According to these models, the numbers of bird species at first increased linearly with increasing patch size; however, the curve then plateaued. Our model including observations from four seasons will be useful for estimating the numbers of bird species in other inland forest patches in South Korea.