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Bird conservation status along a successional gradient in abandoned military areas
Bystřický, Václav ; Reif, Jiří (advisor) ; Hořák, David (referee)
Populations of open habitat bird species has significantly decreased in the Czech Republic during the last decades due to a number of negative factors, such as urbanization and intensification of agriculture. Due to the deterioration of the quality of these biotopes, a number of bird species (not only those of conservation importance) were forced to look for remaining fragments of favorable habitats, which are, for example, abandoned military training areas. The attractiveness of these territories lies primarily in their former closure for military purposes, which has protected these areas against these negative factors. In addition, army's activities created a heterogeneous landscape characterized by a mosaic of biotopes in different stages of vegetation succession - from bare ground, through grasslands, sparse scrubland, dense scrubland to the forest. However, the significance of abandoned military training areas for birds requires deeper investigation. The main goal of this thesis was to describe conservation importance of bird communities in individual biotopes along the successional gradient, for which a survey of 42 abandoned military training areas was used. The results of my work show that the most declining, endangered and protected species of birds sought out early successional habitats...
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Factors affecting farmland bird abundance in different European regions
Bystřický, Václav ; Reif, Jiří (advisor) ; Hořák, David (referee)
Farmland is a very important habitat for many open-habitat bird species. It serves as a food source as well as a breeding and wintering ground. In recent years, however, there has been evidence of population decline in some of these species. This decline is caused by various factors linked to human activities. The aim of this work is to summarise these negative factors and create a comprehensive overview of farmland bird populations status in different parts of Europe. I found that in comparison with other parts of Europe, a much more significant population decline of farmland birds occurs in western and northwestern Europe, mainly due to more intensively cultivated landscapes over the last decades. Central and Eastern European countries are less affected as they show lower intensity of land use associated with numerous small farms as well as the cultivation of spring cereals. In contrast, the abandonment of farmland may be one of the most threatening factors for the whole Mediterranean region. From the perspective of biodiversity conservation, one of the possible solutions could be a lower application of different types of pesticides, cultivation of various kinds of crops or longer- lasting stubble fields. Key words: farmland, birds, biodiversity, population decline, Europe
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