Habitat selection of adult bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus in southern Africa: implications for conservation

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dc.contributor.advisorAmar, Arjun
dc.contributor.advisorMurgatroyd, Megan
dc.contributor.advisorKrüger, Sonja
dc.contributor.authorSheik Abbass, Mohammad Imthiaz Zulfur Ali
dc.date.accessioned2022-03-14T12:21:56Z
dc.date.available2022-03-14T12:21:56Z
dc.date.issued2021
dc.date.updated2022-03-14T11:04:30Z
dc.description.abstractThe Bearded Vulture, Gypaetus barbatus, was previously distributed across southern and western South Africa, as far south as Cape Town. Today, the entire population in southern Africa is restricted to the Lesotho highlands and the Drakensberg escarpment and nearby mountains in South Africa, where the population continues to decline. Research has shown that territorial abandonment is apparently associated with the density of human settlements within 10km of a territory. This pattern was assumed to be linked to the increased risk of unnatural mortalities in areas with higher human presence. However, habitat use and habitat selection, especially whether the species actively avoids human settlements has not yet been explored and could contribute to this pattern. In this study, we used data from nine adult Bearded Vultures fitted with Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite tags to determine which habitat is being selected. We modelled habitat selection in relation to various topographic and habitat variables, including information on built-up areas (i.e., areas with a high density of buildings). We predicted that birds would select areas of grassland and avoid areas with high building density and adjoining areas. We found that Bearded Vultures selected areas closer to their nest sites and supplementary feeding sites, with steeper slopes, and highly rugged terrain. In terms of habitat, they selected areas with grassland and avoided areas with forest, while cropland was neither selected nor avoided. As predicted Bearded Vultures avoided built-up areas and their vicinity. These results suggest that the Bearded Vulture may be sensitive to the negative impacts of a changing landscape in its distribution range. These results can help conservation managers in guiding development (e.g., human settlement expansion and afforestation) and protecting priority habitats (e.g., grassland) within the breeding range of adult Bearded Vultures.
dc.identifier.apacitationSheik Abbass, M. I. Z. A. (2021). <i>Habitat selection of adult bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus in southern Africa: implications for conservation</i>. (). ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/36067en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationSheik Abbass, Mohammad Imthiaz Zulfur Ali. <i>"Habitat selection of adult bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus in southern Africa: implications for conservation."</i> ., ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences, 2021. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/36067en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationSheik Abbass, M.I.Z.A. 2021. Habitat selection of adult bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus in southern Africa: implications for conservation. . ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/36067en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Master Thesis AU - Sheik Abbass, Mohammad Imthiaz Zulfur Ali AB - The Bearded Vulture, Gypaetus barbatus, was previously distributed across southern and western South Africa, as far south as Cape Town. Today, the entire population in southern Africa is restricted to the Lesotho highlands and the Drakensberg escarpment and nearby mountains in South Africa, where the population continues to decline. Research has shown that territorial abandonment is apparently associated with the density of human settlements within 10km of a territory. This pattern was assumed to be linked to the increased risk of unnatural mortalities in areas with higher human presence. However, habitat use and habitat selection, especially whether the species actively avoids human settlements has not yet been explored and could contribute to this pattern. In this study, we used data from nine adult Bearded Vultures fitted with Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite tags to determine which habitat is being selected. We modelled habitat selection in relation to various topographic and habitat variables, including information on built-up areas (i.e., areas with a high density of buildings). We predicted that birds would select areas of grassland and avoid areas with high building density and adjoining areas. We found that Bearded Vultures selected areas closer to their nest sites and supplementary feeding sites, with steeper slopes, and highly rugged terrain. In terms of habitat, they selected areas with grassland and avoided areas with forest, while cropland was neither selected nor avoided. As predicted Bearded Vultures avoided built-up areas and their vicinity. These results suggest that the Bearded Vulture may be sensitive to the negative impacts of a changing landscape in its distribution range. These results can help conservation managers in guiding development (e.g., human settlement expansion and afforestation) and protecting priority habitats (e.g., grassland) within the breeding range of adult Bearded Vultures. DA - 2021 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town KW - land cover KW - vulture KW - habitat selection KW - conservation management KW - telemetry LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PY - 2021 T1 - Habitat selection of adult bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus in southern Africa: implications for conservation TI - Habitat selection of adult bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus in southern Africa: implications for conservation UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/36067 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/36067
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationSheik Abbass MIZA. Habitat selection of adult bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus in southern Africa: implications for conservation. []. ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences, 2021 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/36067en_ZA
dc.language.rfc3066eng
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Biological Sciences
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Science
dc.subjectland cover
dc.subjectvulture
dc.subjecthabitat selection
dc.subjectconservation management
dc.subjecttelemetry
dc.titleHabitat selection of adult bearded vultures Gypaetus barbatus in southern Africa: implications for conservation
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationlevelMSc
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