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Related Concept Videos

What is an Ecosystem?01:17

What is an Ecosystem?

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Measures of species biodiversity, such as richness (i.e., the number of species present) and evenness (i.e., their relative abundance), describe an ecological community’s structure. Many factors affect community structure, including abiotic factors (e.g., sunlight and nutrients), disturbances (e.g., fire or flood), species interactions (e.g., predation or competition), and chance events (e.g., foreign species invasion). Certain species—such as keystone species—also play a pivotal role in the...
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A Video Surveillance System to Monitor Breeding Colonies of Common Terns (Sterna Hirundo)
07:39

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Ecosystem services provided by waterbirds.

Andy J Green1, Johan Elmberg

  • 1Department of Wetland Ecology, Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC, E-41092, Sevilla, Spain.

Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society
|June 22, 2013
PubMed
Summary

Waterbirds provide crucial ecosystem services, from nutrient cycling to pest control, benefiting human well-being. Understanding and valuing these services is essential for effective waterbird conservation and ecosystem management.

Keywords:
bioindicatorscultural serviceseconomic valueecosystem engineeringecosystem servicesnutrient fluxespest controlseed dispersalwaterfowl harvestzoochory

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Environmental Science
  • Conservation Biology

Background:

  • Ecosystem services are vital processes benefiting human well-being.
  • Recent literature identifies ecosystem services and their providers.
  • Waterbirds' roles in aquatic ecosystems are often overlooked.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review and highlight the diverse ecosystem services provided by waterbirds.
  • To identify knowledge gaps and future research directions for waterbird ecosystem services.
  • To explore the economic valuation of waterbird-provided ecosystem services.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of scientific publications on waterbirds and ecosystem services.
  • Analysis of waterbirds' functional roles (predators, herbivores, seed/nutrient vectors).
  • Examination of provisioning and cultural services offered by waterbirds.

Main Results:

  • Waterbirds maintain biodiversity, control pests, and act as bioindicators.
  • They serve as sentinels for disease outbreaks.
  • Waterbirds offer significant provisioning (food, feathers) and cultural services.

Conclusions:

  • Waterbirds play critical, multifaceted roles in ecosystem functioning.
  • Further research is needed to fully understand their ecological functions and the services they provide.
  • Economic valuation can strengthen arguments for waterbird conservation.