The Eastern Arc Mountains are part of the Eastern Afromontane global biodiversity hotspot with a remarkable concentration of endemic species. Wildfire is among the major threats to biodiversity of forested mountains. This study assessed the effect of forest fire on the vegetation and understory birds in the Magamba montane forest, 5 years post a major fire outbreak. Mist-net transects were used to sample understory birds. During the breeding season, active bird nests were searched using the time-constrained method in both burnt and unburnt forests. Vegetation plots were sampled along the mist-net transects, and shrubs and trees were identified and counted. The diversity of trees and shrubs, tree density per plot and canopy cover were significantly higher at unburnt than burnt sites with no difference in shrub density per plot. Bird species composition and number of nests between burnt and unburnt forests differed significantly with a considerable decline of forest interior bird specialists in burnt areas. An invasive plant species, Acacia melanoxylon, was found in dense groves within burnt sites and if not controlled, would escalate the fire regimes to further affecting plants and avian communities. Fire management, restoration and rehabilitation of burnt areas are among the immediate recommended actions.

中文翻译：

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野火对坦桑尼亚东北部山区雨林中植被和林下鸟类群落的影响

东弧山是东阿米翁丹尼全球生物多样性热点的一部分，其中特有物种非常集中。野火是对森林山区生物多样性的主要威胁之一。这项研究评估了大火爆发5年后森林火灾对马甘巴山地森林植被和林下鸟类的影响。雾网样条被用来对地下鸟类进行采样。在繁殖季节，使用时间限制的方法在燃烧和未燃烧的森林中搜索活动的鸟巢。沿薄雾网状样条对植被样地进行采样，并对灌木和树木进行识别和计数。未烧林地的树木和灌木的多样性，每块地的树木密度和冠层覆盖率均显着高于被烧毁的地点，每块地的灌木密度没有差异。烧毁和未烧森林之间的鸟类种类组成和巢数差异很大，烧毁地区的森林内部鸟类专家数量大大减少。外来入侵植物在烧毁地点的茂密树林中发现了金合欢（Acacia melanoxylon），如果不加以控制，会加剧火灾，进一步影响植物和鸟类群落。推荐立即采取的行动包括火势管理，灾区的恢复和修复。