SGER: The Influence of Landscape Variation on Avian Demography: The Feasibility of Using GIS Analytical Techniques

保护生物多样性需要充分了解景观的变化及其对种群持久性的重要性。使用传统方法的研究表明，鸟类种类与植被组成和结构之间存在关系，但无法评估这种变化如何影响种群统计。最近开发的使用陆地卫星图像的地理信息系统(GIS)分析技术将与关于黄眼Junco种群的长期数据集相结合，以更好地了解地形变化对种群结构和持久性的潜在巨大影响。精细尺度的景观特征将与生存和死亡、生产力、运动模式和丰度模式的估计相联系。这项拟议的研究将为研究鸟类种群生物学和保护的研究人员提供一个新的范式。它还将测试“斑块占有率”模型在估计人口趋势和预测人口持久性方面的有效性。如果能开发出准确的“斑块占有率”模型，就有可能收集更多栖息地中更多物种的数据，而不是现在劳动密集型的标记-重新捕获研究所能完成的。保护生物学家和政府机构需要具有成本效益的、准确的方法来评估栖息地、估计鸟类数量趋势和预测种群的持久性。拟议的研究将有助于开发这些模型和分析技术。

Preservation of biological diversity requires that variation in the landscape, and its importance to population persistence be well understood. Studies using traditional methods have demonstrated that a relationship exits between bird species and vegetation composition and structure, but have not been able to evaluate how this variation affects population statistics. Recently developed geographic information systems (GIS) analytical techniques using Landsat satellite images will be combined with a long-term data set on populations of the Yellow- eyed Junco, to better understand the potentially large influence of landscape variation on the structure and persistence of populations. Fine-scaled landscape characteristics will be linked to estimates of survivorship and mortality, productivity, movement patterns and abundance patterns. The proposed research will provide a new paradigm for researchers studying bird population biology and conservation. It will also test the effectiveness of "patch occupancy" models in estimating demographic trends and predicting population persistence. If accurate "patch occupancy" models can be developed, it will be possible to collect such data on many more species in a greater array of habitats than can now be accomplished with labor intensive mark- recapture studies. Conservation biologists and government agencies need cost effective, accurate methods of evaluating habitat, estimating bird population trends and predicting population persistence. The proposed research will help develop these models and analytical techniques.