Habitat heterogeneity clearly distinguished in terms of availability of food and habitat resources and landscape features (natural or human-modified) play a crucial role in the avian species composition and population structure. To examine this, a study was carried out in Bhubaneswar, India, to understand the ecological niche distinction in birds based on habitat heterogeneity. Regular sampling was conducted in 30 sampling sites covering six different habitat types in a predominantly urban landscape of Bhubaneswar for understanding the ecological niche in birds. The birds were classified into 11 types of foraging guilds. The insectivorous guild had the highest bird species richness (181 species) and the omnivorous guild had the lowest (11 species). The piscivorous guild and wetland habitat had the strongest linkage, followed by the insectivorous guild and agricultural land. The frugivorous guild was significantly correlated with forest habitats (r = 0.386, p < 0.01) and park and garden habitats (r = 0.281, p < 0.01). This urban area hosted a higher number of bird species in certain habitat types, viz., agricultural lands (52%, 115 species) and forest patches (50%, 111 species). The present study highlights the importance of agricultural lands, forest patches, parks and gardens, and wetlands inside the cityscape for supporting avifauna. It is therefore suggested that such habitats should be conserved inside an urban area to protect native avifauna. Thus, the city development plan must invariably include strategies for conserving the forest patches inside the urban area. Measures must be taken to restrain the degradation of agricultural lands and reduce their utilization for non-agricultural purposes, which will help in further reducing the bird population decline in the urban landscape.

中文翻译：

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栖息地异质性影响城市景观中鸟类饲养行会的组成：来自印度布巴内斯瓦尔的证据

在食物和栖息地资源的可获得性方面，生境异质性得到明显区分，景观特征（自然或人为改变）在禽类的组成和种群结构中起着至关重要的作用。为了检验这一点，在印度的布巴内斯瓦尔进行了一项研究，以了解基于栖息地异质性的鸟类在生态位上的区别。在布巴内斯瓦尔（Bhubaneswar）的主要城市景观中，在30个采样点进行了常规采样，这些采样点涵盖6种不同的栖息地类型，以了解鸟类的生态位。鸟类被分为11种觅食行会。食虫性协会的鸟类物种丰富度最高（181种），杂食性协会的鸟类物种丰富度最低（11种）。食肉行会和湿地栖息地之间的联系最紧密，其次是食虫行会和农业用地。食肉行会与森林栖息地（r = 0.386，p <0.01）以及公园和花园栖息地（r = 0.281，p <0.01）显着相关。该城市地区在某些栖息地类型中拥有更多种类的鸟类，即农业用地（52％，115种）和林地（50％，111种）。本研究强调了城市景观内的农业用地，林地，公园和花园以及湿地对于支持动物群的重要性。因此，建议在城市区域内保留此类栖息地，以保护本地鸟类。因此，城市发展计划必须始终包括保护市区内森林斑块的策略。