Scale in ecology: its importance for the study of avian habitat selection
Tapa del número actual
PDF (Spanish)

Keywords

extent
grain
habitat selection
multiscale studies
scale definition
scale domains
scale types

Abstract

I discuss about the meaning of scale in ecology, and how spatial dimensions of our study influence observed patterns and conclusions about processes producing them. I analyze the importance of establishing the spatial scale in our studies when we evaluate avian habitat selection, and I discuss methods and conclusions of a multiple-scale investigation on bird-vegetation relationships. I conclude that understanding the importance of scale in our investigations allows a better planning of the research project, facilitates the interpretation of the obtained results, and improves the potential to find explanations for the problem under study.

PDF (Spanish)

References

SCHNEIDER DC (1994) Quantitative ecology: spatial andtemporal scaling. Academic Press, San Diego2 KAREIVA P Y ANDERSEN M (1988) Spatial aspects ofspecies interactions: the weeding of models andexperiments. Pp. 38–54 en: HASTINGS A (ed) Com-munity ecology. Springer-Verlag, Nueva York3

PETERSON DL Y PARKER VT (1998) Ecological scale:theory and applications. Columbia University Press,Nueva York4

WIENS JA (1989) Spatial scaling in ecology. FunctionalEcology 3:385–3975

WIENS JA (1983) Avian community ecology: an icono-clastic view. Pp. 355–403 en: BRUSH AH Y CLARK GA(eds) Perspectives in ornithology. Cambridge Univer-sity Press, Cambridge6

WIENS JA (1986) Spatial and temporal variation instudies of shrubsteppe birds. Pp. 154–172 en:DIAMOND J Y CASE TJ (eds) Community ecology. Harper& Row, Nueva York7

KOTLIAR NB Y WIENS JA (1990) Multiple scales ofpatchiness and patch-structure: a hierarchicalframework for the study of heterogeneity. Oikos59:253–2608

CODY ML (1985) Habitat selection in birds. AcademicPress, Nueva York9

WIENS JA (1989) The ecology of bird communities. Cam-bridge University Press, Cambridge10

SHERRY TW Y HOLMES RT (1988) Habitat selectionby breeding American Redstarts in response to adominant competitor, the Least Flycatcher. Auk105:350–36411

HOLMES RT Y SHERRY TW (1988) Assessing popula-tion trends of New Hampshire forest birds: localvs. regional patterns. Auk 105:756–76812

STEELE BB (1992) Habitat selection by breedingblack-throated blue warblers at two spatial scales.Ornis Scandinavica 23:33–4213

ROTENBERRY JT Y WIENS JA (1980) Habitat structure,patchiness, and avian communities in North Ameri-can steppe vegetation: a multivariate analysis.Ecology 61:1228–125014

WIENS JA Y ROTENBERRY JT (1981) Habitat associa-tions and community structure of birds in shrub-steppe environments. Ecological Monographs51:21–4115

WIENS JA, ROTENBERRY JT Y VAN HORNE B (1987)Habitat occupancy patterns of North Americanshrubsteppe birds: the effects of spatial scale. Oikos48:132–14716

O’NEILL RVO Y KING AW (1998) Homage to St.Michel; or, why are there so many books on scale?Pp. 3–15 en: PETERSON DL Y PARKER VT (eds) Eco-logical scale: theory and applications. Columbia Uni-versity Press, Nueva York17

ALLEN TFH (1998) The landscape “level” is dead:persuading the family to take it off the respirator.Pp. 35–54 en: PETERSON DL Y PARKER VT (eds) Eco-logical scale: theory and applications. Columbia Uni-versity Press, Nueva York18

ALLEN TFH Y STARR TB (1982) Hierarchy: perspectivesfor ecological complexity. University of Chicago Press,Chicago19

MAC NALLY R Y QUINN GP (1998) Symposium intro-duction: the importance of scale in ecology. Austra-lian Journal of Ecology 23:1–720

RICKLEFS RE (1987) Community diversity: rela-tive roles of local and regional processes. Science235:167–17121

MARRA PP, HOBSON KA Y HOLMES RT (1998) Linkingwinter and summer events in a migratory bird usingstable-carbon isotopes. Science 282:1884–188622

GRANT PR (1975) The classical case of character dis-placement. Evolutionary Biology 8:237–337

WIENS JA, ADDICOTT JF, CASE T Y DIAMOND J (1986)The importance of spatial and temporal scale in eco-logical investigations. Pp. 145–153 en: DIAMOND J YCASE TJ (eds) Community ecology. Harper & Row,Nueva York24

ADDICOTT JF, AHO JM, ANTOLIN MF, PADILLA DK,RICHARDSON JS Y SOLUK DA (1987) Ecologicalneighbourhoods: scaling environmental patterns.Oikos 49:340–34625

SCHNEIDER DC (1998) Applied scaling theory. Pp.253–269 en: PETERSON DL Y PARKER VT (eds) Ecologi-cal scale: theory and applications. Columbia Univer-sity Press, Nueva York26

MARONE L, LOPEZDE CASENAVE J Y CUETO VR (2001)Historia natural local y ciencia ecológica universal: lossistemas semillas-granívoros en desiertos de Suda-mérica y Norteamérica. Pp. 678–679 en: PRIMACK R,ROZZI R, FEINSINGER P, DIRZO R Y MASSARDO F (eds)Fundamentos de conservación biológica: perspectivas lati-noamericanas. Fondo de Cultura Económica, México DF27

CUETO VR (1996) Relación entre los ensambles de avesy la estructura de la vegetación. Un análisis a tres esca-las espaciales. Tesis doctoral, Universidad de BuenosAires, Buenos Aires28

CUETO VR Y LOPEZDE CASENAVE J (1999) Determi-nants of bird species richness: role of climate andvegetation structure at a regional scale. Journal ofBiogeography 26:487–49229

CUETO VR Y LOPEZDE CASENAVE J (2000) Bird as-semblages of protected and exploited coastal wood-lands in east-central Argentina. Wilson Bulletin112:395–40230

CUETO VR Y LOPEZDE CASENAVE J (2002) Foragingbehavior and microhabitat use of birds inhabitingcoastal woodlands in eastcentral Argentina. WilsonBulletin 114:342–34831

NAROSKY T Y DI GIACOMO AG (1993) Las aves de laProvincia de Buenos Aires: distribución y status. Aso-ciación Ornitológica del Plata, Vázquez Mazzini yL.O.L.A., Buenos Aires

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.