Woodland buffers help maintain bird communities in forest edges, finds study

The structure of the vegetation determines the foraging areas and resources available to birds. It also provides protection from predation. Along with this, the distance of the matrix from protected areas also determines the presence and absence of bird species, as farther the distances fewer the species. The study, by researchers from National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS) and Wildlife Conservation Society India (WCS), finds how vegetation structure and distance from protected area determines the wintering bird community’s usage of woodlands within agriculture fields around Nongkhyllem wildlife sanctuary in Meghalaya.