BIRD MORTALITY IN COMMUNAL ROOSTS DUE TO A SEVERE STORM IN TULUMAYA CITY, ARGENTINA MORTALIDAD DE AVES EN DORMIDEROS COMUNALES A CAUSA DE UNA TORMENTA SEVERA EN LA CIUDAD DE TULUMAYA, ARGENTINA

TALLEI, EVER; BENAVIDEZ, ANALÍA

El Hornero

Asociación Ornitológica del Plata

Año: 2022 vol. 37 p. 147 - 158

0073-3407

Extreme weather events can produce high bird mortality, especially in regions where these events are usually atypical. In urban areas, this situation can be aggravated since birds concentrate in green spaces that can be used as roosts. In the department of Lavalle, a severe storm developed on December 16, 2021. The aims of this study were to quantify dead individuals of birds affected by a severe storm in Tulumaya city, Mendoza, Argentina, and to identify communal roosts to estimate mortality in the urban area impacted by the storm. We recorded 163 dead individuals of five bird species: Patagioenas maculosa, Zenaida auriculata, Myiopsitta monachus, Columbina picui and Passer domesticus. We identified 13 forest patches, seven of which were bird roosts and recorded a total of 595 trees from 19 species. Patches differed in tree abundance and composition. Roosts showed greater tree taxonomic diversity according to the effective number of species. Tree species selected as roosts by birds were Platanus hispanica, Ulmus spp., and Morus alba. Estimated mortality was 628 individuals for the total number of roosts. Due to the limited number of studies in the Neotropics regarding the impact of severe storms on birds, it is important to quantify the effect of such events on avian species in order to plan interventions on spaces in urban risk management.