Critical landscape drivers of the taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversityof birds in Lincang Boshang Airport

Studies of the utilization of different landscape types by bird communities can provide insights into the relationship between landscape types and bird strike risks, which is important for preventing bird strikes at airports. In this study, we conducted a survey of bird communities in four different landscapes (urban area, farmland, woodland, and water) using the line transect sampling method in and around Lincang Boshang Airport in Yunnan Province, China, from October 2019 to July 2020. We surveyed a total of 17 transects. We used bird species diversity indices including species richness, Shannon-Wiener diversity index, Simpson diversity index, and evenness index to characterize the species diversity of bird communities. We also used estimates of functional and phylogenetic diversity to elucidate differences in bird community diversity among the four landscapes during the four seasons. We also calculated the phylogenetic distance, mean pairwise distance, and mean nearest taxon distance to characterize the phylogenetic structure of bird communities, explore mechanisms of community assembly, and quantify correlations among different diversity indices. A total of 151 wild bird species belonging to 52 families and 15 orders were recorded in this study. Significant differences were observed in both phylogenetic and functional diversity among the different landscapes; functional richness was highest for woodland and lowest for water. The phylogenetic distance was highest in woodland and lowest in the urban area. Standardized effect size analysis indicated that the assembly of bird communities in the four landscapes (farmland, urban area, woodland, and water) was primarily affected by landscape filtering. Our findings suggest that understanding the diversity of bird communities and their relationships with landscape factors can aid the management of bird communities around airports and environmental governance.