ORCID
0009-0002-9399-3592
Date of Award
2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Natural Resources
First Advisor
Brendan Fisher
Abstract
Coffee growing-landscapes and maple syrup producing regions support Neotropical migratory birds across their lifecycles, as well as a host of resident species. Although coffee agroforestry systems are known to maintain high avian diversity and abundance, community composition often differs from native forests and species diversity declines with production intensity. Sugarbush management may also alter forests in ways that impact forest bird communities, however these impacts are not well understood. Rising global demand for coffee and maple products is likely to drive expansion of these industries, with implications for forests and forest bird communities. The purpose of this dissertation was to explore the impacts of management and forest habitat attributes on avian diversity and abundance in these two systems. To this end, we conducted a systematic literature review to identify the aspects of forest structure, diversity and composition most important to bird communities, as well as the impacts of silviculture on birds, within forest types that could viably be used for maple sap and syrup production. We also examined the impact of sugarbush management on forest structure and diversity, as well as the impact of all of these variables on bird abundance and diversity, through an observational field study in sugarbushes and unmanaged forest stands across Vermont. Finally, we examined the impact of coffee cultivation and forest cover at local- and landscape-scales on bird functional diversity – specifically functional richness, evenness, and redundancy – in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia. Collectively, this work underscores the importance of forest structure and diversity for avian abundance and diversity, with implications for “bird-friendly” management of working lands.
Language
en
Number of Pages
288 p.
Recommended Citation
Morse, Liza, "Avian Responses to Management and Habitat Structure in Coffee Farms and Maple Sugarbush Stands" (2025). Graduate College Dissertations and Theses. 2068.
https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/graddis/2068
Included in
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons, Forest Sciences Commons, Natural Resources and Conservation Commons