How are North American breeding birds responding to climate change?
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Gowens, Lily Irene
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Abstract
Climate change is widely predicted to alter where species live. However, studies have shown large variation in the responses of individual species, suggesting that multiple factors may be involved in driving climate change response and evaluating responses at the level of the entire community may reveal larger-scale trends. Warming temperatures may act as a direct driver of community response, whereas changes in biotic factors such as habitat—that are themselves a reflection of the changing climate—act as an indirect effect. In this study we investigate whether warming temperatures and changes in composition of tree communities are driving changes in North American bird community temperature indices, using historical survey data of breeding birds and local tree communities. We found that bird communities are not accurately tracking warming, but changes in local tree composition may be a driver of climate change response in montane bird communities. We highlight the importance of evaluating the potential effects of abiotic and biotic factors combined when quantifying community climate change response, as such knowledge will enable more focused conservation strategies.
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Undergraduate Research Option Thesis