Seasonal Dynamics of the Avian Guild Structure of Mountain Secondary Forest in Dabieshan Mountain

Abstract

Between December 2007 and December 2008, we studied the avian guilds structure of the secondary broad-leaved forests in Yaoluoping, Dabieshan Mountain, Anhui Province. We used focal sampling method to observe feeding behaviors of the bird community, and collected food resource utilization data. PC-ORD was used in Cluster Analysis for the guild structures in the two seasons, and Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCA) for the feeding patterns of the 32 birds in both the breeding/non-breeding seasons. Results indicated that during the non-breeding season, the bird community could be divided into four guilds: ground forager, shrub forager, tree trunk (branches) forager, and canopy forager. In addition to the four listed guilds, there was an air foraging guild during the breeding season. The first axis of DCA represented the information of the foraging height, the second axis represented the information of the foraging position, and the third axis represented the information of the foraging pattern and the foraging matrix. The ordination for the 32 birds by the first two DCA axes indicated the behavior of 6 birds mainly changed along the first DCA axis, which represented the change information of the foraging height. Additionally, behavior of 4 birds mainly changed along the second DCA axis, which represented the change information of the foraging position.