Lowland rainforest avifauna and human disturbance: persistence of primary forest birds in selectively logged forests and mixed-rural habitats of southern Peninsular Malaysia

We compared the composition and structure of primary forest avifauna among primary forests, selectively logged forests and mixed-rural areas (e.g. villages and agricultural areas) of Peninsular Malaysia. We found that forests that were selectively logged at least 30 years ago contained only 73–75% of the 159 species of extant primary forest birds, with an increased proportion of dominant species. We estimated that only 28–32% of the primary forest species utilized the mixed-rural habitat, and that the number of species that bred in the agricultural landscapes might be even lower. The microhabitat of different species most affected their vulnerability to disturbance. Most small, arboreal frugivores and omnivores, and insectivores that fed from tree trunks, showed greater persistence in the mixed-rural habitat than ground dwelling bird species, which were affected most by disturbance. Resource abundance and variables that were closely related to forest disturbance such as the density of large trees, density of dead trees, canopy cover density and shrub volume influenced the distribution of the primary forest birds. Large primary forest reserves and a revision of short-cycle logging regimes (ca. 30 years) are needed if we are to conserve the lowland rainforest avifauna of Peninsular Malaysia and other parts of Southeast Asia.