A Preliminar Study of the Avifauna Composition of Four Parks in Salto, São Paulo, Brasil

Abstract

Abstract The birdlife of a given region plays several ecological roles, such as plant pollination, seed dispersion pest control, maintenance of gene flow, in addition to attracting tourists to birdwatching. Therefore, knowledge about this biota is related to its importance within ecosystems and to quantifying the effects of human intervention on their habitats. The municipality of Salto, located in the southeast of São Paulo/Brazil, is a mutualistic transition zone that comprises areas of three brazilians biomes. Furthermore, the city has a large presence of riparian forest on the banks of the Tietê River, and for this reason, it is one of the 70 cities in the state considered touristic resorts, standing out for its natural landscape and attracting ecotourism. To characterize the endemic and migratory native bird communities in Salto, the present work was carried out in four diferent preserved parks, from March/2021 to March/2023. The analysis was carried out based on field observation and survey of photographic records on the WikiAves platform, using qualitative criteria, in which 340 species of wild birds were cataloged in the area. This is the first study of birdlife characterization in the region, whose main objective was to generate data and demonstrate ecological dynamics between main fragments, to monitor seasonal movement of avifauna and also provide subsidies for environmental enrichment in the area. Through this study, it is also possible to plan new strategies for conservation, environmental education and sustainable tourism in the municipality.