FBC Overview for #UCDcitsci workshop

Fresno Bird Count - Citizen Madhusudan Katti Fresno Bird Count Science for a changing world Department of Biology, California State University, Fresno www.fresnobirds.org 23 January 2012, UC Davis Citizen Science WorkshopMonday, January 23, 12

Whither biodiversity in an urbanizing world? • More humans now live in cities than ever before • But we continue to look outside cities for wildlife • urban ecology remains a relatively “new” discipline • Urban areas are replacing not only natural habitats, but also other human landscapes such as farmland • Understanding what happens to other species under urbanization is therefore criticalMonday, January 23, 12

Challenges and Data Needs for Urban Ecology • Urban habitats are highly variable • many different land uses • rapid changes over short distances • need many sites for precision in data • Many species of birds • Measurements must be repeatable at same sites over yearsMonday, January 23, 12

Fresno Bird Count - Census SitesMonday, January 23, 12

Fresno Bird Count - April 15-May 15: Survey Design & Census Methodology • 460 sites on a 1Km X 1Km grid • each site located randomly within a single grid cell • Grouped into 58 clusters (routes) of 7-8 sites each • possible to cover all sites in a single morning • Counts must be conducted within 4 hours after sunrise • Point Count • 5-minute duration • count all birds seen & heard • within a 40m-radius circle while standing at center point • record number of individuals seen for each species • supplementary observations - birds outside circle / time windowMonday, January 23, 12

Study Area & Sampling Design Fresno Clovis Metropolitan Area (FCMA) Fresno Bird Count Study Area Madera County California Clovis Fresno County Fresno Fresno County FBC site Censused in 2008 Habitat surveyed (N=460) (N=184) in 2008 (N=38) B. Schleder, 2010. M.S. Thesis, California State University, FresnoMonday, January 23, 12

Fresno Bird Count: Public Participants’ Perspective • Volunteers include local birdwatchers, students, and faculty from CSU Fresno • recruited via Fresno Audubon, county bird listserv, ﬂyers on campus/in town • Motivation for participation • Interest in birds and the environment • Concern for local water policy issues • Academic interest (thesis, class project, etc.) • What do they get out of it? • we have only just begun to evaluate this systematically, but... • most seem to enjoy the ﬁeld work, bring friends along; • are intrigued by results we have so far, judging by attendance at public talks and response to articles in newsletters and blog posts. • are likely to become more engaged in urban policy & management efforts.Monday, January 23, 12

Bird Species Richness in the FCMA • In 2008 • 186 points surveyed by 30 volunteers • 68 bird species recorded • 3,263 total birds • Average species richness per site 5.13 ± 0.16 SE 1"3$spp$ 3"6$spp$ 6"9$spp$ 9"12$spp$ B. Schleder, 2010. M.S. Thesis, California State University, FresnoMonday, January 23, 12

Urban Long-Term Research Area Fresno And Clovis Ecosocial Study urban-faces.orgMonday, January 23, 12

One set of pathways examined • Irrigation rate will be positively correlated to the socioeconomics of a neighborhood. • Vegetative cover will be partially correlated with an increase in irrigation. • Bird species richness will be partially positively correlated with areas containing increased vegetative cover. • Foraging guild richness will be partially correlated to areas of higher irrigation. B. Schleder, 2010. M.S. Thesis, California State University, FresnoMonday, January 23, 12

Multivariate drivers of bird species richness Relative performance of alternative models with human (socioeconomic/demographic/ behavioral) and ecological (cover, biotic/abiotic) variables to predict bird species richness. Models with ∆AICc < 7 are shown (per: Burnham et al 2011). No. Model AICc ∆AICc R2 Param % Bldg, (% Poverty*Irrigation) 2 156.85 3.26 0.293 % Bldg, (% Poverty*%Grass), (% Poverty*Irrigation) 3 154.32 0.73 0.383 % Bldg, (% Poverty*%Grass), 4 153.59 0 0.438 (% Poverty*Grass Height), (% Poverty*Irrigation) % Grass, % Bldg, (% Poverty*%Grass), 5 154.54 0.95 0.46 (% Poverty*Grass Height), (% Poverty*Irrigation) % Grass, % Bldg, Grass Height, (% Poverty*%Grass), 6 156.07 2.48 0.49 (% Poverty*Grass Height), (% Poverty*Irrigation) Schleder 2010. MS Thesis.Monday, January 23, 12

Poverty, irrigation, & bird diversity • Residential irrigation decreased significantly with increased % poverty. • Species Diversity: Multivariate results indicate that poverty has strong indirect effects on bird species diversity through intermediate variables including irrigation, % grass, % open canopy, and mean grass height. • Guild Diversity: Poverty and Irrigation significantly affects bird guild diversity. Multivariate results show that both poverty and irrigation have strong effects on bird guild diversity through intermediate variables including mean grass height and % grass. B. Schleder, 2010. M.S. Thesis, California State University, FresnoMonday, January 23, 12

Other pathways being studied • Same sampling scheme as FBC • Tree Diversity and Habitat Cover • Social Survey of individual households (first round complete) • Interviews of institutional actors (key policy makers & implementers in city govt; in progress) • Land Use Land Cover (LULC) analysis (preliminary)Monday, January 23, 12

It takes a village to study the city... • Citizen Scientists of the Fresno Bird Count! • Graduate students: Bradley Schleder, Seth Reid, Jenny Phillips, Pedro Garcia • Paying the bills: • Fresno Audubon Society • Robert and Norma Craig Foundation • CSU Fresno: Provost, College of Science and Mathematics, Division of Graduate Studies • National Science Foundation & U.S. Forest Service (ULTRA-Ex Award # 0949036) • Tucson Bird Count, NiJeL for database management • City of Fresno, City of Clovis, Fresno County NiJeLMonday, January 23, 12

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FBC Overview for #UCDcitsci workshop

by Madhusudan Katti

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