Green zones in urban area as potential sites for bird diversity conservation

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Research Paper 04/05/2023
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Green zones in urban area as potential sites for bird diversity conservation

Garima Tiwari, Animesh Shukla
Int. J. Biosci.22( 5), 35-45, May 2023.
Certificate: IJB 2023 [Generate Certificate]

Abstract

In the world of urbanization, various problems are emerging as serious threats to the environment; and air pollution is one among those. Air pollution exerts various adverse impacts not only on human health but also on the avifaunal community. With rapid urbanization, the green cover in the cities is shrinking speedily. The loss of urban vegetation is causing a reduction in the diversity of the urban bird community. The purpose of this study is to highlight the potential of green areas and parks in urban areas for the conservation of the diversity of bird species and to ascertain the detrimental effects on the diversity of birds due to air contaminants. Five distinct sites were selected for the execution of the study in the summer of 2022. The point count approach was used for monitoring bird species. The air pollution contaminants (HCHO, PM 10, TVOC and PM 2.5) were measured through a portable ‘Air Quality Monitor Pollution Metre’. The Shannon-Wiener diversity index and total species richness were used to calculate the diversity of bird species. A finding was made that the sites possessing dense vegetation cover have minimum pollution levels and rich diversity of bird population, while the sites with no or less vegetation cover have high pollution levels and the least diversity of birds. It is due to the reason that vegetation cover reduces the pollution intensity, thus supporting the system favorable for avifaunal diversity.

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