Research Starter Grant-Understanding the relationship between housing density and forest structure on avian communities across forested landscapes

森林内的住房开发由于植被结构的丧失和改变而减少和改变了鸟类的栖息地。由于测量植被结构即使是在小范围(几公顷)也是困难和耗时的，人们对房屋如何在较大范围内改变森林结构以及反过来如何影响鸟类知之甚少。这项研究的目的是通过结合住房密度和森林结构的信息来了解房屋对森林中鸟类种群和群落的影响。将使用激光测高(LiDAR)计算北卡罗来纳州森林结构的高分辨率三维估计，并使用美国人口普查的住房密度数据进行分析，以提供栖息地质量的估计。鸟类衡量标准将来自北美繁殖鸟类调查，并根据栖息地质量进行建模。这项研究将首次将住房数据和多个景观上的三维森林结构信息整合在一起，以了解它们对鸟类的相对影响，从而有利于保护和管理。这项研究还将以精细分辨率(10米)制作出有史以来最大的三维森林地图，并将与各机构和其他组织共享。这项工作本质上是跨学科的，在生态学、社会学和地理学领域架起了桥梁。还有一些教育机会将使本科生受益，包括那些来自代表人数较少的群体的学生，如夏威夷原住民。

Housing development within forests has reduced and modified bird habitat through loss and alteration of the vegetation structure. Because measuring vegetation structure is difficult and time consuming even at small scales (several hectares), little is known about how houses alter forest structure at larger scales, and in-turn how this affects birds. The goal of this study is to understand the effects of houses on bird populations and communities in forests by coupling information on housing density and forest structure. High resolution, three-dimensional estimates of forest structure will be calculated for North Carolina using laser altimetry (LiDAR), and analyzed with housing density data from the U.S. Census to provide estimates of habitat quality. Bird measures will be derived from the North American Breeding Bird Survey and modeled against habitat quality. This study will be the first ever to integrate housing data and three-dimensional forest structure information over multiple landscapes for the purpose of understanding their relative effects on birds in order to benefit conservation and management. The research will also result in creation of the largest three-dimensional forest map ever produced at a fine resolution (10 meter) and this will be shared with agencies and other organizations. The work is inherently interdisciplinary in nature and bridges fields of ecology, sociology, and geography. There are also education opportunities that will benefit undergraduate students, including those from underrepresented groups, such as Native Hawaiians.