BIRD FAUNA OF AGROFORESTRY SYSTEMS IN GREECE

One third of the 453 bird species that have been recorded in Greece, a total of 147 species, are characterized as “species of agropasture systems”, from which 95 species are breeders in Greece (Figure 1). This category features the highest number of species compared to other categories in Greece and contains species of open areas. Their basic habitats are: cultivated land, pastures (mesophile, dry, alpine), areas with scree and maquis, shrublands, rock faces, agroforestry areas and others. Most species nest on the ground or in bushes, and also this group includes martins and swifts that nest in buildings. Their diet includes insects, seeds, fruits and berries (Dimalexis et al. 2004).

This category primarily includes: Passerines, such as wheatears Oenanthe sp., warblers Sylvia sp., shrikes Laniidae sp. and buntings Emberiza sp.; species of open lands like pipits Anthus sp.; ground birds like larks (Alauda arvensis, Lullula arborea, etc.), partridges (grey partridge Perdix perdix and rock partridge Alectoris graeca); the quail (Coturnix coturnix), Coraciiformes (Bee-eater Merops apiaster), the hoopoe (Upupa epops), the roller (Coracias garrulus); cuckoos and other rare or threatened species, such as the thick-knee and the turtle dove, or even invasive species like the rose-ringed parakeet (Psittacula krameri) and the cattle egret (Bubulcis ibis).

Associated with agroforestry landscapes are also species of other groups, mainly large raptors (Alivizatos et al. 2014), owls (little owl Athene noctua, scops owl Otus scops, barn owl Tyto alba), woodpeckers (balkan woodpecker Dendrocopos syriacus, little woodpecker Dryobates minor, wryneck Jynx torquilla) and forest birds (tits Parus sp., flycatchers Muscicapa sp. and Ficedula sp. and thrushes Turdus sp.)

Sometimes and depending on local circumstances of landscape formation, the agroforestry landscapes are home to waterbirds like Herons (grey heron Ardea cinerea, little white egret Egretta garzetta, little bittern Ixobrychus minutus), ducks (mallard Anas platyrhynchos, ferruginus duck Aythya nyroca), coot (Fulica atra), and moorhen (Gallinula chloropus). These birds can be observed in small artificial ponds or small natural wetlands which constitute spatial structural elements and are maintained and used by farmers and animal breeders for their water needs.

Agroforestry landscapes host a great variety of birds, because of their spatial heterogeneity

All the above species all the above species benefit from agroforestry landscapes during their breeding period, either because they nest or because they use the landscape for foraging. In fact, some, are typical “anthropophile species”, like the white stork (Ciconia ciconia), the lesser kestrel (Falco naumanni), the little owl (Athene noctua) and the levant sparrowhawk (Accipiter brevipes). Agroforestry landscapes are also very important for the migration and wintering of birds, because there they find abundant food resources (Brotons et al. 2018).