Southeast Asia Information Port News (www.dnyxxg.com) – A team led by Chen Sichong, a researcher at the Wuhan Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, has confirmed through research that large ancient trees play a vital "refuge" role in the survival of urban birds. The findings were recently published in the international journal *Biological Conservation*.
Urbanization has led to the fragmentation of animal habitats. In highly urbanized areas with sparse vegetation, large ancient trees are preserved due to their unique value. These large trees provide ecological functions that newly constructed green spaces cannot replace. For example, their large and complex canopies provide important resting places for birds, and their abundant fruit provides an important food source for fruit-eating birds.
To verify the shelter function of large urban trees for birds and to clarify the changing patterns of plant-animal interactions with the degree of urbanization, Chen Sichong's team selected 30 large ancient trees, including camphor, hackberry, and oak, from the suburbs to the city center of Wuhan. During the autumn fruit ripening season, they observed the behavior of birds passing by, resting, and foraging around these trees.
Chen Sichong explained that the team recorded the behavioral activities of approximately 5,000 birds of 41 species. The results showed that while bird diversity declined with increasing urbanization, birds' dependence on or utilization of large trees actually increased. The proportion of birds perching on large trees in city centers was four times that of those in the suburbs, and the proportion of birds feeding on tree fruits was more than 150 times higher.
The study also found that the duration of a single stop or foraging session on large trees did not differ significantly between birds living in the suburbs and city centers; in fact, there was a slight decrease in the duration in city centers, possibly due to greater disturbance.
This study uses data to demonstrate that large ancient trees in cities are not only living relics with historical value but also core infrastructure for maintaining urban ecological functions and building resilient urban landscapes. Their importance is more pronounced closer to the city center. "The protection of large ancient trees needs to go beyond simple labeling; it requires maintaining the micro-habitats of large trees in urban planning and improving the surrounding green space system, so that these large trees truly become the ecological cornerstone of sustainable urban development," said Chen Sichong. (End)
