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The Ecological Role Of Traditional Home Gardens In Facilitating Bird Movement In Human-Modified Tropical Landscapes.
Fredy Vargas-Cárdenas1,2, Daniel M Auliz-Ortiz3, Eliane Ceccon4
1Centro Regional de Investigaciones Multidisciplinarias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Av. Universidad Circuito II, Morelos, Mexico.
Environmental Management
|July 7, 2026
Summary
Traditional home gardens (THG) act as crucial stepping stones, enhancing bird movement and connectivity between forest fragments in tropical landscapes. Conserving these agroforestry systems supports biodiversity in human-modified environments.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Conservation Biology
- Landscape Ecology
Background:
- Habitat loss and fragmentation threaten biodiversity in tropical agricultural landscapes.
- Agroforestry systems, like traditional home gardens (THG), offer tangible products and enhance landscape connectivity.
- Understanding how human-managed habitats facilitate species movement is key for biodiversity persistence.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate if traditional home gardens (THG) facilitate bird movements between forest fragments in a mountainous region of Mexico.
- To analyze bird movement orientation within THG and compare it to hypothetical routes connecting forest patches.
Main Methods:
- Recorded bird arrival and departure directions in THG.
- Analyzed movement orientation using circular statistics.
- Compared observed bird movements with hypothetical routes based on landscape structure.
Main Results:
- Birds predominantly departed THG in the opposite direction of their arrival, indicating a stepping-stone function.
- This pattern was consistent across most bird guilds, except for granivorous species.
- Observed bird movements aligned with routes connecting surrounding forest fragments via THG.
Conclusions:
- Traditional home gardens (THG) significantly enhance functional connectivity for birds in fragmented tropical landscapes.
- THG act as biological corridors, supporting ecological flows and species persistence.
- Conserving and managing THG is vital for safeguarding biodiversity in human-modified environments.
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