Threats and Anthropogenic Influence on the Biodiversity of Birds in Urban Ecosystem

Abstract

In order to accommodate the growing human population, urbanization is spreading quickly over the world, but it is drastically affecting the local flora and fauna. The current study was conducted in and around the Chhattisgarh city of Bilaspur, covering a three-stage urbanization gradient. During the COVID-19 pandemic, observations were conducted at the three sites that were chosen between September 2019 and February 2021. Bird surveys employed the point count approach, while measures of sound pressure, or noise, were taken at each of the three sites that were chosen. The Shannon-Wiener diversity index, Fisher's alpha diversity index, and total species richness were used to calculate the avian diversity. The urban center had the highest sound pressure and the lowest bird species richness; however, as we moved out into the countryside, the noise levels dropped and the bird species richness rose. This is mostly because urban settings are becoming less attractive to many bird species due to increased noise levels. Additionally, we discovered that the diversity of the urban bird community was far lower than that of the rural one, with only a few dominant species.