Species distributions and local richness patterns: From simulations with artificial species to conservation planning for birds of the Chilean forests

A science-based conservation planning often starts by gathering basic information such as the identification of the species of interest, their distribution, their current level of protection, and their habitat requirements. In this study my main objective was to gather some of this basic information for forest bird species in central Chile. Although there are a variety of studies in the temperate forests of Chile, these have traditionally been carried out in the southern end of the country or in isolated islands, where the climate is predominantly cold and rainy and human impacts are still relatively low. In contrast, the transition zone between Mediterranean and temperate climates, which includes the northern limit of the temperate forests, remains largely unstudied. This is also a region in the country with high human intervention, mainly through agriculture, forestry and urbanization. It is in this central region of Chile where I focused my study to gather basic information on forest bird species distribution and habitat requirements. In the first chapter I explore different methods to predict species distributions using presence and absence records in general. In the second chapter I used bird species relative abundance and presence absence records to create maps of species habitat suitability in the remaining forests of central Chile. I used these maps to compare habitat quality within the currently protected areas and within sites currently defined as conservation priority with a random sample of the landscape. I also used a systematic planning strategy to identify areas of conservation interest and compared these to the priority areas defined by the national commission for the environment (CONAMA). Finally, in the third chapter, I explored the effect of local vegetation structure, and regional productivity and climate on bird species local richness and diversity.