For 18 years, the birds in the Nigerian forest were traced, and the impact of human activities on the population of birds in the event of human activities

Recently, the Chinese Biological Diversity Protection and Green Development Foundation (referred to as China Green Fair, Green Association) Bird Watching Working Group learned from an internationally renowned journal that it has been tracked in a small forest in Nigeria in 18 years. Experts discovered the impact of human activities on bird population. The Green Bird Watching Working Group now compiles this article for reference and understanding of interesting readers.

(Source: The Conversation)

If you live in Europe, you can almost find statistics about birds you like in the environment. How many species are, where do you find them, whether the number of them increases or decreases. In some countries, such as the United Kingdom, a comprehensive investigation was conducted 60 years ago. They have drawn the maps of each bird and calculated three times.

These detailed statistics can effectively monitor the environment. This is because birds provide food, clean water, good soil and quality of life for humans.

In West Africa, there are almost no system monitoring of bird population trends. But this situation is changing. The initiative and research led by the Institute of Bird Science, the University of Jos University in central Nigeria, has initiated the long -term monitoring process of Nigerian birds and the environment.

Recently, the scientist of the institute compiled some monitoring data collected from the Alumurum Nature Reserve for 18 years. Alumurum is a small (about 300 hectares) of lush grasslands, surrounded by farmland, and the institute was established here.

The research team's research results on bird population and related environmental conditions have been published in the "Ostrich" magazine, which is the leading bird magazine in Africa. They show that the population of most birds in the protected area has remained stable or increased during this period. This is encouraging because it shows that simply protecting a small habitat fragment can produce an overall active population benefit.

This study is encouraged because it trains people who can engage in similar jobs in a larger scale.

Birds, vegetation and precipitation

Aurum Forest Reserve is a new protected area in the northern suburbs of central Nigeria. Our students and graduate teams use the fog network monitoring and protection zone from 2002 to 2019. We simulated the changes in the trend of birds and local bird species in the past 18 years, and used vegetation and rainfall data to associate with any changes in the quality of the annual environment of the year.

(Source: Ishong Joy Akpanta. Nigeria Alumurum Reserve. A.P. Leventis Institute of Bird.)

In our research, there are 10 kinds of migratory birds breeding in Europe, but most of the non -breeding time is in Africa, and there are 41 common resident birds.

Birds are a effective way to monitor bird populations. It includes setting a lot of fog nets, because they are more or less invisible, they can intercept flying birds, and then flying birds fall into the net bag, they cannot leave. Those who are trained can safely remove the birds from the net and put a metal ring with a unique number on their legs to mark them. They were released and returned to the environment unscathed. One month or two months later, when the net and the new birds were erected together, if these birds that were previously raised were still alive, some of them would be re -captured in the area.

After several investigations in the year, each time you use the same efforts and positions, you can re -capture several times. Coupled with mathematical statistics, you can calculate the number and survival rate of bird population. You can even monitor the performance of a species in reproduction by the proportion of juveniles and adult fish that are captured.

We also collected satellite remote sensing data, measured the greenness of the vegetation, showed the location and quantity of the vegetation, and collected rainfall data. Vegetaries and rainfall records are compared with changes in the number of birds.

Most bird species are found to be stable; 30%of migratory birds and 7%of the birds have increased, while 10%of migratory birds and 29%of the birds have decreased slightly. Vegetation coverage increases, and the rainfall pattern is stable. This shows that the environmental conditions on the scene during this period have improved slightly. However, the population trends of only a few species have a significant correlation with the productivity and rainfall of vegetation.

(African owl. Source: Ishong Joy Akpanta)

In general, the results of the study show that the population of local migratory birds and bird species has changed similarly, which is quite stable or increased. This may reflect such a fact that monitoring is performed in a new protected area, and the protected area is the best habitat in the wider area.

Most of the reduced bird species are related to open grassland areas. As the impact of human activities in the study place decreases, bird species of these areas will decrease.

Conservation training

But these specific results are not the only story here. Although the changes in Amurum Forest are positive and encouraged, it is not important within Africa. But this is true. It is important that the monitoring process has begun, and people are undergoing training in order to monitor other places in a wider range.

Bird Ringing is a powerful method, but requires long -term commitments and well -trained personnel.

(Source: Ishong Joy Akpanta) AP Leventis Bird Institute was established in 2001. It is the first (also the only one) bird research institute in West Africa.Its mission is to improve Nigeria's environmental research and protection capabilities by cultivating the master's degree in protecting biology.

Part of the training involves the direct experience of survey and monitoring of moving plants, especially birds, especially birds.Since 2002, it has been running the birdming plan.The institute has now trained about 150 trained personnel, including West African University, protecting non -governmental organizations, and government agencies or ministries and commissions.They know the importance of environmental monitoring.They know what to do.They have enthusiasm to influence others to do this.It may only be that there are relatively few experts in birds, but it can bring appropriate environmental management to everyone.

For the original text:

https://theconVersation.com/weve-been-tracking-n-A-Small-forest-FOR-18-WHAT-FOHY-IT-Matters-189116

Compilation: daisy

Review: SARA

Edit: Pierre

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