BUKU ABSTRAK - Universiti Putra Malaysia

Forestry & Environment
Importance of Freshwater Wetlands for Migratory Birds
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mohamed Zakaria Hussin
Muhammad Nawaz Rajpar
Faculty of Forestry, University Putra Malaysia,
43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
+603-8946 7161; mzakaria@putra.upm.edu.my
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey each year undertaken by many bird species to their breeding
and feeding grounds. Birds are the most conspicuous and significant components of freshwater wetland
ecosystem; their presence or absence may indicate the ecological conditions of the wetland area. The objectives
of this study were to determine the importance of freshwater wetlands for migratory bird species at Paya Indah
Wetland Reserve, Peninsular Malaysia. The study was conducted using distance sampling point count and mistnetting
methods. A total of 13,872 bird observations belonged to 100 species and 38 families were recorded
using point count method in the study area. Out of this, 570 bird observations (18 species; 13 families) fall into
migratory bird species. In addition, mist netting method captured a total of 1,478 individuals belonged to 65
species and 32 families. Of this, 117 individuals (13 species and 10 families) belonged to the migratory birds.
The migratory species include pipits, shrikes, snipes, minivets, flycatchers, crakes, bitterns, jacanas, sandpipers,
warblers, hawks, kingfishers, cuckoos, plovers, sunbirds, prinias and buntings. The results of this study clearly
indicated that Paya Indah Wetland Reserve is highly important stopover for migratory bird species and provides
diverse food resources, nesting and roosting sites and also shelter from harsh weather and predators. Therefore,
it is strongly recommended that this wetland reserve should be protected and declared as another Ramsar Site for
the country.
Keywords: Migratory birds, freshwater, wetland, distance sampling, mist-netting
Understorey Bird Responses to the Edge-interior Gradient in an Isolated Tropical
Rainforest of Malaysia
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mohamed Zakaria Hussin
Hossein Varasteh Moradi and Zamri Rosli
Faculty of Forestry, University Putra Malaysia,
43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
+603-8946 7161; mzakaria@putra.upm.edu.my
To investigate the edge effects on the community of understorey birds, an isolated tropical rainforest of
Malaysia was chosen. Birds and environmental variables were detected within a 25-m radius of each of 93
sampling points distributed throughout the forest. Based on bird-habitat associations along the edge-interior
gradient, two groups were distinguished. Abundance of the edge-specialist group was positively correlated with
ground cover, light intensity, shrub cover, temperature, and percent of shrub cover between 0.5 and 2 m height. In
contrast, the interior-specialist group avoided the forest edge and was positively associated with humidity, canopy
cover, number of dead trees, percentage of litter cover, and depth of the litter layer. Migratory species showed no
preferences for edge or interior habitats, but brood parasites were more abundant near edges, as were species that
invaded the forest from the matrix surrounding the patch. Species endemic to the Sunda sub-region were more
abundant in the forest interior. From a conservation perspective, forest remnants in the lowlands of Peninsular
Malaysia that have a deep leaf litter layer, a dense canopy cover, high number of dead trees, and high relative
humidity are able to support regionally significant understorey bird species that are sensitive to edge effects.
Keywords: Forest interior, forest edge, understorey birds, vegetation structure
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