Are birds more afraid in urban parks or cemeteries? A Latin American study contrasts with results from Europe

F MORELLI; LM LEVEAU ET AL.

SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

Lugar: Amsterdam; Año: 2023

0048-9697

The escape behaviour, measured as flight initiation distance (FID; the distance at which individuals take flight when approached by a potential predator, usually a human), is a tool widely used to study fearfulness and risk-taking in animals. Previous studies showed significant differences in the escape behaviour of birds inhabiting cemeteries and urban parks, in European cities, where birds seem to be more timid in parks than cemeteries. In this study, we collected a large dataset of the FID of birds inhabiting cemeteries and parks, in eight Latin American countries, and considered three levels of urbanization (peri-urban, suburban and urban). Fifty-two bird species were recorded, with mean species-specific values of the FID ranging between 2.6 and 23.7 m. Applying a Bayesian regression model controlling for the phylogenetical relatedness of the FID among bird species and country level, we found that overally, the FID was similar in different levels of urbanization: peri-urban, suburban and urban areas. The FID was positively associated with starting distance, and negatively associated with both human density and human speed. In Latin America, the FID was unrelated to the type of green area (cemetery or park). Our results indicate that idiosyncratic patterns in animal fearfulness towards human may emerge among different geographic regions, highlighting difficulties with scaling up and application of regional findings on other ecosystems and world regions.