Preservation of historical heritage increases bird biodiversity in urban centers

Abstract

Urban expansion negatively influences biodiversity by eliminating habitats and homogenizing the biotic component, to which many species are unable to respond. However, historical cities, with their protected heritage sites, maintain many fragments of vegetation (gardens, squares, etc.). Such fragments permit the existence of biodiversity, especially of birds, because they provide areas for shelter and food and function as stepping stones that increases the permeability of the urban matrix. We hypothesized that the presence of green areas, such as gardens and parks, would favor greater richness and abundance of bird species, especially omnivores and granivores, during the dry season and in the Historic Center of the city of Ouro Preto. Birds were sampled by point counts at 35 points distributed throughout the urban matrix of Ouro Preto, where richness and abundance were recorded and correlated with land use. Both the presence of green areas and the maintenance of the Historic Center influenced the bird community present in the urban center, with higher richness in areas with more shrubs and trees and closer to larger forested fragments. Bird abundance was greater in the Historic Center and during the rainy season. These findings demonstrate that maintaining heritage sites in urban centers can mitigate the expected negative impacts of urbanization by allowing small patches of vegetation to serve as favorable habitats for bird species.