Local forest structure, climate and human disturbance determine regional distribution of boreal bird species richness in Alberta, Canada

• Published in: Journal of biogeography Vol. 40; no. 6; pp. 1131 - 1142
• Main Authors: Zhang, Jian, Kissling, W. Daniel, He, Fangliang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.06.2013; Blackwell Publishing; Blackwell; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Abiotic factors; Animal and plant ecology; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Anthropogenic influences; Aves; Aviculture; Biological and medical sciences; Biomass; Bird richness; Birds; boreal forest; Boreal forests; Canopies; Community structure; Forest biomass; Forest canopy; Forest habitats; Forestry; functional trait; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General aspects; General forest ecology; Generalities. Production, biomass. Quality of wood and forest products. General forest ecology; guild assembly; habitat heterogeneity; Habitats; Humans; Insectivores; Old growth forests; Plants; Species; Species richness; species-energy theory; structural equation modelling; Synecology; taiga; Vegetation; vegetation structure; Vertebrates: general zoology, morphology, phylogeny, systematics, cytogenetics, geographical distribution; Woody plants; Canada; Alberta; North America; America; Canada, Alberta; Boreal forest; guild assembly; Climate; species—energy theory; structural equation modelling; Theory; Functional trait; Biogeography; Environmental factor; Regional; Guild; Modeling; Heterogeneity; Local structure; Bird richness; Vertebrata; Habitat; Taiga; Aves; Vegetation structure; habitat heterogeneity; Species richness; Anthropogenic factor

Aim: It is challenging to disentangle how local habitat structure, climate, and human disturbance interplay to determine broad-scale variation of species richness. Here, we separated various measures of local forest structure and composition, abiotic factors, and human land cover that constrain spec...