Proposed Research Project

The Bird Diversity Between Tree Species in Hong Kong
UCLAN ID: G21260508
Email: MLEE1414@student.myersough.ac.uk
Introduction :

This study focus on the bird diversity between tree species in Hong Kong. Stagoll et al. (2012) mentioned that old trees can be greater quantity of eatable food sources for different type of organisms. Furthermore, according Barth et al. (2015), established trees can attract more birds than young tree because it can generate more fruits and generate tree hollows.

This paper is to investigate i) the necessary and advantages on implementing a holistic green planning including to introduce more tree species which could easily accommodate different kind of bird and the possibility of alternative proposal in urban greenery, ii) to study whether bird species are correlated with the species and iii) current situation of tree species and bird species in Hong Kong and assessing the opportunities and the barrier on implementation at present.

Methodology:

The study will be based on a systemic search and categorizing of relevant literature review on ScienceDirect databases (January 2014 – January 2024) to extract original research paper examining bird diversity between tree species , relevant literatures published between March 2014 to March 2024 only with English language. Papers will includes the data collection and analysis. Conference proceedings and papers difficult to locate were exclude. Evidence for showing importance on linkage of local, district and regional green forestry with bird diversity are summaries in general.

For the species of trees, Old Value Trees and non Old Values Trees in Hong Kong will be selected for flied work. Information will be analysis by the statistical method, describing data using descriptive statistics ( e.g. graphical presentation)

For the tool collecting tree bird data, the range finder app and binoculars will be used as estimate the tree height and use to count the far objects.

No. Title Author Year of publication Study location (city, state, country, continents and climatic zones)
1 Single dead trees matter: Small-scale canopy gaps increase the species richness, diversity and abundance of birds breeding in a temperate deciduous forest Pawe Lewandowski, Fabian Przepióra 2021 Carpathians (SE Poland)
2 How do edge effect and tree species diversity change bird diversity and avian nest survival in Germany’s largest deciduous forest? Péter Batáry, Stefanie Fronczek 2014 Hainich National Park, Germany.
3 Relating forest structural characteristics to bat and bird diversity in the Italian Alps Francesca Rigo, Chiara Paniccia 2024 Italy
4 Shelterwood harvests promote high breeding bird diversity and shrubland species for less than 10 years in hardwood forests Cathryn H. Greenberg , Maria Whitehead , J. Drew Lanham 2023 North Carolina, USA.
5 Large trees as a key factor for bird diversity in spruce-dominated production forests: Implications for conservation management Dominik Kebrle , Petr Zasadil , Jan Hošek 2021 Czech Republic (CR)
6 Evergreen ivy vines as a key element maintaining the high diversity of birds wintering in Central European forests Łukasz Kajtoch a, Emilia Grzędzicka 2023 Southern Poland and central Slovakia
7 Key structural factors and their thresholds for promoting bird diversity in spruce-dominated production forests of central Europe Dominik Kebrle , Jeňýk Hofmeister 2023 Czech Republic
8 Breeding bird abundance and species diversity greatest in high-severity wildfire patches in central hardwood forests Cathryn H. Greenberg , Christopher E. Moorman 2014 Western North Carolina, USA
9 Bird taxonomic and functional diversity, group- and species-level effects on a gradient of weevil-caused damage in eucalypt plantations Ricardo S. Ceia , Nuno Faria 2018 Central Portugal:
10 Genetic diversity of an invasive tree across time and contrasting landscape conditions Natalia Aguirre-Acosta 2016 China and Korea
11 Site and landscape scale drivers of bird and insect diversity in Native and novel forest ecosystems of Central Portugal Mauro Nereu , Joaquim S. Silva 2015 Coimbra district, Central Portugal
12 Even minor logging road development can decrease the functional diversity of forest bird communities: Evidence from a biodiversity hotspot Nan Wu , Baoshuang Hu , Yao Wang 2023 Shennongjia World Natural Heritage Site , Hubei Province, central China
13 Functional diversity of tree cavities for secondary cavity-nesting birds in logged subtropical Piedmont forests of the Andes Alejandro . Schaaf, Daniela Gomez, 2020 Northwestern Argentina
14 Broadleaf retention benefits to bird diversity in mid-rotation conifer production stands Matts Lindbladh , Johan Elmberg , Per-Ola Hedwall 2022 Southern Sweden
15 Bark beetle infestation spots as biodiversity hotspots: Canopy gaps resulting from insect outbreaks enhance the species richness, diversity and abundance of birds breeding in coniferous forests Fabian Przepióra , Jan Loch , 2020 Tatra Mts.
No. Title Author Year of publication Study location (city, state, country, continents and climatic zones)
16 Effects of habitat degradation on bird functional diversity: A field test in the Valdivian rainforest Francisco E. Fontúrbel , Juan F. Betancurt‐Grisales 2022 South American countries
17 Fire and tree species diversity in tropical peat swamp forests Liubov Volkova , Haruni Krisnawati 2023 Indonesia
18 Advantages and limitations of tree mixtures in enhancing avian diversity in commercial timber plantations: Early insights from southern China Demeng Jiang , Xinran Miao 2023 Nanning and Chongzuo municipalities in Guangxi.
19 Effects of tree retention and woody biomass removal on bird and small mammal communities Alexis R. Grinde 2020 Northern Minnesota USA,
20 Characterising the richness and diversity of forest bird species using National Forest Inventory data in Germany Judith Reise , Florian Kukulka 2019 Forest area of Germany
21 Land use diversity and prey availability structure the bird communities in Norway spruce plantation forests Lucie Vélová , Adam Véle 2021 Czech Republic
22 Effects of plant species richness on the structure of plant-bird interaction networks along a 3000-m elevational gradient in subtropical forests Boyu Lei, Yaoyao Tian, Jifa Cui, 2023 Hubei Province, central China
23 Non-native tree plantations are weak substitutes for near-natural forests regarding plant diversity and ecological value Khanh Vu Ho , György Kröel-Dulay 2023 Danube and Tisza in Hungary
24 Examining the temporal effects of wildfires on forest birds: Should I stay or should I go? Roger Puig-Gironès, Lluís Brotons 2023 Catalonia
25 Short-term experimental support for bird diversity retention measures during thinning in European boreal forests Julian Klein , Matthew Low 2022 Central Sweden
26 Seasonal patterns of habitat use of resident birds in Białowieża Forest and its links to post-disturbance management Rosanne J. Michielsen , Michał Żmihorski 2024 Poland and Belarus
27 Shifting tree species composition affects biodiversity of multiple taxa in Central European forests Jan Leidinger , Markus Blaschke 2021 Southern Germany.
28 Beyond beaver wetlands: The engineering activities of a semi-aquatic mammal mediate the species richness and abundance of terrestrial birds wintering in a temperate forest Izabela Fedyń , Fabian Przepióra 2023 Poland
29 Differential effects of forestry plantations on bird diversity: A global assessment Gabriel J. Castaño-Villa 2019 ISI Web of Science, Scopus, and ScienceDirect databases (January 2000 – December 2017)
30 Microhabitat requirements and occupancy of understorey bird forest specialists in Southern Mistbelt Forests of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa Nasiphi Bitani , Craig P. Cordier 2023 South Africa
Table 2 : Authors, year, journal and study location of the 30 research paper on examining bird diversity between tree species extracted in this study
Result:
Table 1: Searching keywords on ScienceDirect databases (January 2014 – January 2024) to extract original research paper examining bird diversity between tree species
Discussion and Conclusion

By using strategic searching, a total of 295 original, peer reviewed research paper examining bird diversity between tree species extracted in this study were identified. A wide range of discipline was discovered, including arboricultural, ecology, economic, education and urban plantation, only 11 % of the papers are related to Bird Diversity between Tree species. Geographic region distribution of the 30 research papers on examining bird diversity between tree species extracted in this study as listed in Table 3, including Africa, United States, Asia, Europe and so on.

Compared with Old Value Trees and Non Old Value Trees Species Composition in Hong Kong, there are some birds namely: Tree Sparrow, Feral Pigeon, Spotted Dove, Yellow-crested Cockatoo, Red-whiskered Bulbul, Crested Myna, Eurasian Magpie, Oriental Magpie Robin, Japanese White-eye, Black-collared Starling, Large-billed Crow, Asian Koel, Great tit, Alexandrine Parakeet, Common Tailorbird, Masked Laughingthrush, Black crowned Night, Heron, Red-billed Blue and Magpie found in the top 5 common trees namely Ficus macrocarpa, Cinnamomum camphora, Ceiba pentandra, Ficus virens var. sublanceolata and Albizia lebbeck. The details is listed in table 5.

However, it is found that the result may cause by external factors, such as animal disturbance ( e.g. cats and squirrels, chemical applications).

For future studies, it could focus on some topics, including connecting and collaborating the multi-levels of urban forestation, expanding the program to large- scales identification, policy and planning improvements, seeking strategic solutions and conduct scientific studies to achieve the bird diversity between tree species.

Table 3 : Geographic region distribution of the 30 research papers on examining bird diversity between tree species extracted in this study
Table 4 : Top 5 Old Value Trees and Non Old Value Trees Species Composition in Hong Kong
Table 5: Bird species found in TOP 5 of Old Value Trees and with other trees
References:
  • Barth James, B., Ian FitzGibbon, S., & Stuart Wilson, R. (2015). New urban developments that retain more remnant trees have greater bird diversity doi:https://doi.org.eproxy.vtclib9.vtc.edu.hk/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2014.11.003
  • Le Roux, D. S., Ikin, K., Lindenmayer, D. B., Manning, A. D., & Gibbons, P. (2014). The future of large old trees in urban landscapes. Plos One, 9(6), e99403. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0099403
  • Jim, C.Y., Chan, W.H.,2016. Urban greenspace delivery in Hong Kong: Spatial-institutional limitations and solution. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening. 18. 65-85
  • Roy, S., Byrne, J.A., Pickering, C., 2012. A systematic quantitative review of urban tree benefits, costs, and assessment methods across cities in different climatic zones. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 11, 351-363.
  • Stagoll, K., Lindenmayer, D. B., Knight, E., Fischer, J., & Manning, A. D. (2012). Large trees are keystone structures in urban parks. Conservation Letters, 5(2), 115-122. doi:10.1111/j.1755-263X.2011.00216.x
  • Shmelev, S.E., Shmeleva, I.A., 2009. Sustainable Cities: problems of integrated interdisciplinary research, International Journal of Sustainable Development 12, 4-23.