Spatial Heterogeneity of Bird Communities in the Natural Landscapes of the Southern Taiga of the Ob–Yenisei Interfluve and the Chulym River Valley (Tomsk Region)

The study area covers the Ob-Yenisei interfluve in the southern taiga zone of Western Siberia within the Tomsk region. On this territory in 2012, 2013 and 2017, the spatial heterogeneity of bird communities in the summer on routes stretching more than 350 km was studied. Thirty-nine habitats in the taiga, forest and swamp landscapes of the rivers and floodplains of large and medium rivers, as well as lesopolye landscapes of agricultural lands were surveyed. When analyzing the data, all of them are combined into 12 main types of landscape tracts, reflecting the diversity of natural conditions of the study area along the gradient from southeast to northwest along the Chulym river valley. Significant differences in population density, species richness and composition of the dominant bird species were established. In taiga and forest habitats there was a significant decrease in these indicators from north to south, which correlates with the overall productivity of cenoses and a variety of forest vegetation conditions. In floodplain intrazonal landscapes, spatial variability of bird communities is not associated with latitudinal differences, but is determined by such environmental factors as water encroachment onto territories, forest cover and population density within landscape tracts.