Summer passerine fauna of floodplains and human settlements of Kabardino-Balkarian steppe zone

Aleksandr Lenshin

Authors

Aleksandr Lenshin Saint Petersburg State University, 7–9, Universitetskaya nab., Saint Petersburg, 199034, Russian Federation

Abstract

The aim of study is to set the characteristic structure features of the summer fauna of passerines in floodplains and human settlements of Kabardino-Balkarian steppe zone, as this part of the habitat of the North Caucasian steppe zones remains the least studied territories of Russia in terms of ornithology. We conducted bird watching at the nesting period (mid-May — mid-June) from 2002 to 2010. Total in floodplain areas we found 36 species of passerines, including 20 species which nest here regularly, 5 species — periodically. 29 species in total were found in human settlements. Of these, about 12 species nest here regularly, about 3 species periodically. Summer fauna of floodplains includes 4 ornithocomplexes: steppe (5 species), forest (24 species), water-demanding (4 species) and complex of settlements (4 species). During the breeding period passerine fauna of human settlements is represented by 2 ornithocomplexes: forest (24 species) and complex of settlements (5 species). The main feature of the avifauna habitat data is atypical for the steppe zone feature — the least numerous are mostly open space species (steppe species complex), suggesting almost total disappearance of steppe habitats, as well as the disappearance or reduction of the number of species of passerines that could move into these habitats. Refs 12. Fig. 1. Table 1.

Keywords:

steppe zone, passerines, floodplain, ornithological complex, anthropogenic transformation, the density of species, settlements, ornitocompleх, Caucasus, plain, synanthropic, summer avifauna

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