Influence of Urban Infrastructure on the Presence of Birds in PSHS-MC

Bio3.2D - Albia, Alino, An, Espiritu, Ferrer

Abstract
The presence of different bird species in PSHS-MC was studied in
relation to the existing urban infrastructure of the the campus. The areas that
were observed and compared were the SHBs atrium and a flyway located
beside the gymnasium. These were checked twice per day, once in the
morning break and once in the afternoon break, for two weeks. The results
show that there is a higher species richness and slightly higher number of bird
sightings for the flyway. This can be due to the atrium attracting only a fewer
number of bird species which are urban-adapted as compared to the flyway.
Keywords: birds, urban-adapted, infrastructure

Introduction
Birds are endothermic archosaurs characterized by their adaptations to facilitate
flight. Two main structures present in them are wings, which operate as airfoils while flying,
and feathers, which constitute the wing structure. In the present, all extant species of birds
are organisms that belong to the clade Neornithes. These species have manifested a wide
range of characteristics: ratites such as the ostrich and kiwi are flightless, penguins adapted
their wings for stronger propulsion underwater, and hummingbirds developed a structure in
their wings which allows them to hover and fly backwards (Campbell, 2016).

Proliferating in an urban setting like Metro Manila are two major bird distinctions:
species that prefer urban built-up areas and species that prefer greenspaces (e.g. Libingan
ng Mga Bayani, UP Diliman Campus, etc.). In greenspaces, the natural landscape attracts
endemic and migrant birds alike, while mostly non-native, urban tolerant birds occupy the
built-up areas.The most dominant bird populations across Metro Manila are the Eurasian

Tree Sparrow (P. montanus), Yellow-vented Bulbul (P. goiavier), Golden-bellied Fly-eater

(G. sulphurea), ), and Brown Shrike (L. cristatus) (Vallejo Jr., Aloy &
Pied Fantail (R. javanica
Ong, 2009).
 1. (Top, from left to right) Passer montanus, Pycnonotus goiavier, Gerygone sulphurea,
Figure
(Bottom, from left to right) Rhipidura javanica, Lanius cristatus

The current study was conducted in order to observe the diversity of birds present in
the PSHS-Main Campus Science & Humanities Building Atrium, as compared to the birds
that can be found in the trees near the basketball court, where a flyway for birds and bats
can be found. The comparison of these areas were done in order to see whether the
presence of urban infrastructure, such as the concrete walls which surround the Atrium,
bears an effect on the species abundance and richness of the birds who visit it.

Materials and Methods

To accomplish the experiment, the members of the group picked a day, or days, in
which they would observe a given place on a given time. In this experiment, the places
observed were the PSHS-Main Campus Science & Humanities Building Atrium and a flyway
near the Gymnasium. The times the observation happened were during the morning break
(9:30 - 9:50 am) and the afternoon break (2:25 - 2:45 pm). Five minutes were spent for the
observation every session.

The experiment was done in a total of fourteen days, or two weeks. The first week
(Feb. 20-26) was spent in observing the species and number of birds that showed up in the
PSHS-Main Campus Science & Humanities Building Atrium. The second week (Feb. 27 to
 March 5) was spent in observing the species and number of birds in the flyway which can be
found in the trees near the basketball court. The species of the birds that appeared were
described, but were all counted as a total, as opposed to counting the number of birds per
distinct species.
To provide a background on the conditions of the location, the trees in both areas
were identified. The trees inhabiting the atrium are mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), an
unidentified member of the palm family (Palmae), jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus),
mango (Mangifera indica), a tree that may be narra (Pterocarpus indicus), and santol
(Sandoricum koetjape). These trees were identified by consulting Mr. Abagat of the PSHS
Biology unit and then confirming his claims with legitimate sources (Morton, 1987; Crane,
Balerdi & Maguire, 2016; Arecaceae, n.d.; Pterocarpus, n.d.). The flyway consisted
primarily of two tree species: kaimito (Chrysophyllum cainito, n.d.), and an unidentified
second species.

Figure 2. Atrium plants (Top, left to right): Swietenia macrophylla, member of Palmae family, (Bottom,
left to right): Artocarpus heterophyllus, Mangifera indica, Pterocarpus indicus, Sandoricus koetjape
 Figure 3. Flyway plants (Left to right): Chrysophyllum cainito, unidentified species

Results

Table 1. Total number of bird species and species richness as recorded from February 20,
2017 to March 5, 2017

Total Number
Total Total Number of Average Number
Venue of Bird
Days Birds of Birds (per day)
Species

Atrium 8 1 106 13.25

Flyway/Walkway 6 9 93 15.5

Table 1 summarizes the data recorded from Table 2 in the appendix section of the
paper. As shown in Table 1, the average bird species richness per day in the flyway is
greater than the average bird species richness per day in the atrium. Moreover, the total
number of bird species is higher in the flyway, having around nine various species, as
asser montanus was observed.
opposed to the atriums, where only P
It was observed that P. montanus was the most common species found for both
areas. For the atriums case, it was observed that more P. montanus were observed on the
roofs rather than the trees.

Discussion
Due to the distance from the birds, clear pictures to discern their features couldnt be
made. Instead, the goal of this discussion will be to explain the difference in species richness
and abundance between the two areas.
Passer montanus species have a tendency to favor spaces with urban infrastructure.
This is because they use buildings as foraging and nesting grounds. Second most common
species of birds are the Pycnonotus goiavier, which have a tendency to be more abundant in
open spaces. As for other common Metro Manila birds, Rhipidura javanica and Gerygone
sulphurea are uncommon but have a higher tendency to frequent areas with urban
infrastructure, and Lanius cristatus , which are more abundant in open spaces (Vallejo Jr. et
al, 2008).
It appears that the presence of trees in the atrium did not attract the frequenting of
Passer montanus as much as the presence of urban infrastructure. Based on the information
asser montanus can be
above, the reason behind the domination of the atrium by P
discerned: the area provides spaces for nesting and for perching. Because other common
species arent as abundant, this study was unable to observe them in this area with its two
week-long time period.
In relation to the data, there was a study made by Morris (2014) in which it was
concluded that there is a relationship between landscapes characteristics and bird diversity.
The same research also negated the relationship between trees and bird diversity. It
appears that in the gathered data, the relationship of landscape and trees are stronger than
those of the trees and the birds. Therefore, it can be said that the landscape characteristics
attracted the aforementioned birds, like wide area for example, and not the trees
themselves which would explain the situation of the birds in the atrium. This also explains
why a greater variety of bird species prefer frequenting the flyway despite the area having
less trees.
Another factor which could influence the sightings of the birds in the atrium as
compared to the flyway is the noise. Noise could have disrupted normal bird activities and
therefore sightings as sounds are often used by animals to communicate with each other or
to indicate danger. This is especially true for birds as they use sounds extensively. Birds use
sounds to isolate which are of their species, for pair bond formation, pre-copulatory display,
territorial defense, danger, advertisement of food sources and flock cohesion (Ortega, 2012).
Relatively, the noise in the atrium is comparably high compared to the flyway. This could be
attributed to three things. First, the atrium is in an enclosed space. In an enclosed space,
since the distance is shorter, sound would bounce faster and this would make the sound
louder. Second, the atrium is located in the center of a school building. Normally, this should
not affect the research in itself since the school is often quiet during class hours, it is with
conjunction with the third factor wherein this becomes important. The third factor is that the
observation happened during the first five minutes of the morning and afternoon break. This
is a time in which the noise level in the SHB building is high as the students move from their
classes or to take their breaks. This has had the effect of lessening the species richness in
the atrium as compared to the flyway. As Francis, C. (2009) has come to note, the resulting
decrease in species richness is a result of urban-adapted species taking over the areas less
noise-tolerant species normally inhabit. This is due to the higher reproductive success of
urban-adapted species as the noise also disrupts predator-prey interactions of these species
which allows them to proliferate.
Based on the descriptions of the birds in the flyway (See Table 2), and on the list of
identified birds in Metro Manila (Vallejo Jr., Aloy & Ong, 2009), the species of the birds
observed in the area can be inferred. Some of those identified as Passer montanus can
actually be Anthus novaeseelandiae. The woodpecker-like bird on Feb. 28 could be
Dendrocopus maculatus, or the Philippine woodpecker. The yellow-colored bird on that
same day could either be Gerygone sulphurea, or P
ycnonotus goiavier.

Conclusion
The influence of man-made buildings on bird species richness was studied by
thorough observation and comparison of birds and bird sightings in an experimental venue,
particularly the PSHS-MC Atrium, and a flyway. The average number of birds observed in
the flyway is greater than the average number of birds in the atrium as this landscape
attracts a lot of bird species. Bird species richness, however, is higher in the flyway than the
atrium as the atriums urban setting is tolerable only to a few bird species.
Appendix
Table 2. Bird sightings from February 20, 2017 to March 5, 2017

Date Time Birds Number of Birds

AM Break Passer montanus Atrium - 6

20-Feb
PM Break Passer montanus Atrium - 3

AM Break Passer montanus Atrium - 9

21-Feb
PM Break Passer montanus Atrium - 6

AM Break Passer montanus Atrium - 12

22-Feb
PM Break Passer montanus Atrium - 11

AM Break - Atrium - 6
23-Feb
PM Break - Atrium - 2

AM Break Passer montanus Atrium - 8

24-Feb
PM Break Passer montanus Atrium - 3

Atrium - 12
AM Break Passer montanus
Walkway - 18
25-Feb
Atrium - 11
PM Break Passer montanus
Walkway - 6

Atrium - 0
AM Break Passer montanus
26-Feb Walkway - 1

PM Break - -

AM Break - -
27-Feb
PM Break - -

Woodpecker-like bird and

28-Feb AM Break Flyway - 8
yellow colored body bird
 Dark brown, sharp beak,
PM Break and black and white neck Flyway - 11
color bird

Sparrows, Small and

Triangular Wings,
AM Break Flyway - 12
Long-Tailed, White,
1-Mar Unidentified

Sparrow, Long-Tailed, 2
PM Break Flyway - 9
Unidentified

AM Break - Flyway - 8
2-Mar
PM Break - Flyway - 7

Passer montanus, Dark

AM Break brown + Sharp beak + black Flyway - 8
and white neck color bird
3-Mar
Dark brown + Sharp beak +
PM Break black and white neck color Flyway - 7
bird

Atrium - 5
AM Break Passer montanus, Gray, Bat
Flyway - 7
4-Mar
Atrium - 7
PM Break Passer montanus
Flyway - 2

Atrium - 5
AM Break Passer montanus, Gray
5-Mar Flyway - 4

PM Break - -

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