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Climate change aggravates bird mortality in pristine tropical forests.
Jared D Wolfe1,2, David A Luther2,3, Vitek Jirinec2,4
1College of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA.
Science Advances
|January 29, 2025
Summary
Amazonian rainforest birds face declining survival due to harsher dry seasons. Even intact forests are not safe havens as climate change impacts bird populations, especially longer-lived species.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Climate Change Biology
- Ornithology
Background:
- Undisturbed rainforests were thought to be climate change refugia.
- However, Neotropical bird populations are declining in intact rainforests.
- Dry season severity (hotter temperatures, reduced rainfall) is a key climate variable.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the vulnerability of resident rainforest birds to climatic variability.
- To focus on the impact of dry season severity on bird survival.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 4264 individual bird captures over 27 years.
- Statistical modeling to link climatic variability with apparent survival rates.
- Focus on Amazonian understory bird communities.
Main Results:
- Harsher dry seasons significantly reduced apparent survival for 24 out of 29 bird species.
- Longer-lived species were more strongly affected by dry season severity.
- A 1°C increase in average dry season temperature predicted a 63% reduction in mean apparent survival for the understory bird community.
Conclusions:
- Climate change is directly linked to declining bird survival in the Amazon.
- Pristine rainforests may not fully protect biodiversity under severe climate conditions.
- The assumption of rainforests as climate refugia is challenged by these findings.
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