Comparing bird species in the Granite Mountains Reserve

Lacy, Lori

This paper presents the results of a bird observation study performed in the desert ecosystem of the Granite Mountains Reserve. Two habitats within the desert, flatlands and mountains, are compared according to the species of birds present within each habitat. Results of the study indicate that the mountain habitat is the more diverse habitat of the two, in bird species it supports. This greater diversity in bird species is probably sustainable because of the higher variation in microhabitats present in the mountain area. In addition, it was found that species present in a habitat can often be correlated to niche requirements for that species. Food resources are certainly important, but shelter, foraging ability and strategy, interspecific competition, and predation risks contribute to the geographical distribution of bird species in the desert as well. In turn, all of those factors are likely to contribute to guild organization in the entire desert ecosystem.