A trait dataset for Taiwan's breeding birds

Pei-Yu Tsai; Chie-Jen Ko; Chia Hsieh; Yi-Ting Su; Ya-Jung Lu; Ruey-Shing Lin; Mao-Ning Tuanmu

doi:10.3897/BDJ.8.e49735

A trait dataset for Taiwan's breeding birds

Biodivers Data J. 2020 May 19:8:e49735. doi: 10.3897/BDJ.8.e49735. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Pei-Yu Tsai¹, Chie-Jen Ko^{2

3}, Chia Hsieh⁴, Yi-Ting Su⁵, Ya-Jung Lu¹, Ruey-Shing Lin², Mao-Ning Tuanmu⁶

Affiliations

¹ Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica Taipei Taiwan.
² Endemic Species Research Institute, Jiji, Nantou, Taiwan Endemic Species Research Institute Jiji, Nantou Taiwan.
³ Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, National Taiwan University Taipei Taiwan.
⁴ BioSciences Department, Rice University, Houston, United States of America BioSciences Department, Rice University Houston United States of America.
⁵ Department of Life Sciences, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan Department of Life Sciences, National Cheng Kung University Tainan Taiwan.
⁶ Thematic Center for Systematics and Biodiversity Informatics, Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan Thematic Center for Systematics and Biodiversity Informatics, Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica Taipei Taiwan.

Abstract

Background: Species traits affect how a species interacts with the environment and other species and thus determine the role of the species in an ecosystem. They affect not only population dynamics of a species across space and over time, but also community structure and function through their key role in the community assembly processes. Information on species traits is also highly relevant for conservation planning as they determine the adaptive ability of a species in the face of environmental changes. However, information on species traits is usually scarce and sparsely distributed amongst diverse types of literature and sources. Difficulty in accessing comprehensive information on species traits has formed an essential knowledge gap, limiting our understanding of biodiversity patterns and ecosystem functioning and preventing effective conservation. Even for birds, a well-studied taxon, comprehensive trait information is still unavailable or distributed across different sources for many species.

New information: In this study, we compiled information from a variety of sources on 23 traits for all breeding birds, including 157 resident and 14 summer visiting species, in Taiwan and surrounding islands. The 23 traits include those related to the movement patterns, morphology, geographic distributions, activity patterns, feeding behaviour, habitat use, and breeding behaviour and strategies of the species. The trait information was obtained, not only from published literature and datasets, but also from unpublished banding records and specimen measurements. The dataset also contains derived traits, including the elevation and temperature boundaries of species distribution ranges in Taiwan. In addition, structured information on nest characters, which is seldom compiled in trait datasets, has been made available, for the first time, for the breeding birds in Taiwan. Therefore, the most comprehensive trait dataset to date on breeding birds in Taiwan will allow trait-based research and applications in diverse topics and thus enhance our understanding of the patterns and dynamics of breeding bird diversity and its functions in Taiwan.

Keywords: breeding strategy; distribution; feeding behaviour; habitat use; life-history trait; morphology; movement; nest character.

Pei-Yu Tsai, Chie-Jen Ko, Chia Hsieh, Yi-Ting Su, Ya-Jung Lu, Ruey-Shing Lin, Mao-Ning Tuanmu.