The Effect of the Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctatus), Island Quality and Habitat on the Distribution of Native and Endemic Birds on Small Islands within Fiji
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Other Title
Authors
Morley, Craig G.
Winder, Linton
Winder, Linton
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Degree
Grantor
Date
2013-01-17
Supervisors
Type
Journal Article
Ngā Upoko Tukutuku (Māori subject headings)
Keyword
Fiji
native birds
endemic birds
Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctatus)
native birds
endemic birds
Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctatus)
ANZSRC Field of Research Code (2020)
Citation
Morley, C.G., and Winder, L. (2013). The Effect of the Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctatus), Island Quality and Habitat on the Distribution of Native and Endemic Birds on Small Islands within Fiji. Plos One. 8 : e53842
Abstract
This study investigated the effect of the presence of introduced mongoose, environmental quality and habitat on the distribution of native and endemic birds on 16 small islands within Fiji. In total, 9055 birds representing 45 species were observed within four key habitats (forest, villages, crop land and coastal vegetation) on the 16 islands, half of which had mongoose present. Previous studies attribute bird declines and extirpation anecdotally to the mongoose. The presence of mongoose, environmental quality and habitat type had a measurable influence on observed extant native and endemic bird communities. We conclude that three ground birds; Gallirallus phillipensis, Anas supericiliosa and Porphyrio porhyrio were negatively influenced by the presence of mongoose and that Ptilinopus perousii, Phigys solitarius, Chrysoenas victor, Ducula latrans, Clytorhyrchus vitiensis, Pachycephala pectoralis, Prospeia tabunesis, and Foulehaio carunculata were particularly dependent on good quality forest habitat. Conservation priorities in relation to protecting Fiji’s endemic birds from the effect of mongoose are discussed and preventative measures suggested.
Publisher
Public Library of Science
Permanent link
Link to ePress publication
DOI
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0053842
Copyright holder
The Authors
Copyright notice
Copyright: 2013 Morley, Winder. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.