Selective Logging in a Sumatran Rainforest: An Analysis on How Bird Species Richness, Abundance, and Community Composition Respond to Logging Intensity

Abstract

Despite decades of study on the impacts of selective logging on forest biodiversity, there continues to be uncertainty on how bird populations respond to this type of habitat disturbance. On the island of Sumatra, Indonesia, a previously heavily logged rainforest, the Harapan Rainforest Ecosystem Restoration Concession, has recently come under environmental protection, opening an opportunity to study how the bird biodiversity in this forest compares to that of an unlogged protected forest. I report on the impact of selective logging intensity on species richness, total abundance, and community composition. I focus my analysis on modeling abundances for 12 focal species, including the critically endangered Helmeted Hornbill. My study suggests that there are limited short-term benefits to some bird species in selectively logged forests but the long-term implications are still not understood.