Breeding bird assembplage and vegetation structure of hardwood floodplain forest in protected area Ostrovné lúčky

Abstract

Lowland floodplain forests are one of the last refuges of biotic diversity in Europe, which makes them very valuable. Protected area Ostrovné lúčky (W Slovakia) represents an example of well-preserved hardwood ash-elm-oak floodplain forest fragment. Old Danube side arms, old trees and high volume of deadwood also add to its natural character. The aim of this study was to determine the ecological value of the area by investigating its bird assemblage and vegetation structure. The breeding bird assemblage was studied using point count method (n=10 points). During two breeding seasons in years 2020 and 2021, 49 bird species (36 breeders) were recorded. Density of breeding pairs of all species was 171. 9 p/10ha in 2020 and 170. 7 p/10ha in 2021. Shannon diversity index was 2.98 in 2020 and 3.11 in 2021. Dominant species (>5%) in both years were Parus major, Turdus philomelos, Fringilla coelebs, Sylvia atricapilla and Cyanistes caeruleus. In addition, 39 tree species were identified in the study area. Our results indicate that Ostrovné lúčky is an important refuge for birds in the suburbs of Bratislava. We suggest that water bodies and volume of dead wood have a positive effect on the bird assemblage of the area. On the other hand, our results indicate that non-native trees have a slightly negative effect on this bird assemblage. However, further research is needed to validate these claims.

Keywords

• point count
• danube floodplain
• forest
• ostrovné lúčky
• birds
• slovakia