Landscape-scale habitat selection by Buff-throated Partridges Tetraophasis szechenyii during the breeding season

Habitat selection is an important field of research in wildlife conservation. Although there are some quantitative studies on habitat selection by Buff-throated Partridges(Tetraophasis szechenyii), a Galliform species legally listed in Category I of the nationally protected animals in China, a natural ordering of selection process has not been considered in the analysis of habitat selection. Following the widely used definition of spatial scales in habitat selection, this study examined landscape-scale(second-order) habitat selection by Buff-throated Partridges during the breeding season in the Pamuling Mountains, Yajiang County, Sichuan. The technique of playback was used to investigate the occupancy of Buff-throated Partridges in 250 m buffer zone around 80 point stations, and the habitat variables of each station were achieved from topographic data and the available digital cartography resolutions. The logistic-regression habitat models showed that the proportions of fir-larch forests, oak thickets and pine forests were the most important predictors for the occupancy of Buff-throated Partridges. It was predicted that Buff-throated Partridges selected preferential sites with higher proportions of fir-larch forests and oak thickets, but a lower proportion of pine forests as their home ranges. The habitat selection pattern might have important consequences in terms of avoiding predators and gathering food. For the habitat management, it is suggested that fir-larch forests and oak thickets should be given priorities for conservation, and a mosaic of important habitats should be maintained.