Agricultural Science and Soil Sciences

Abundance and Diversity of avian species were studied in Old Oyo National Park Nigeria. The study area was divided into two ranges based on their different vegetation types. Point count method was used to collect data on bird species diversity and abundance in the two ranges. Counting bands of the 50m radius were used for all the stations. The minimum distance between two counting stations was 200 m. In all 30 counting station were used, 15 stations per a study range were used. On arrival at the sites, birds were allowed time to settle before recording all the birds seen or heard for a predetermined time, (usually, 20 minutes). Bird calls were also recorded with a voice recorder and played back later for confirmation. Physical features of birds sighted but could not be identified immediately were taken and field guide book of West African birds was used to identify the bird species and bird calls was used to confirmed the presence of nocturnal bird species within the study sites. Data was collected for six months with three months in the dry season (November, February and March) and three months in the wet season (June, August, and September) in 2015. A total of 149 bird species belonging to 52 families and 20 orders were recorded in the study area. The Order passerformes had the highest frequency (51 %) of the entire number of birds recorded, while the dominant family was Pycnonotidae, comprising (10 %) of the total species One endangered bird species, Crested Guinea Fowl (Guttera pucherani) was encountered in Yemosho Range. The relative abundance of bird species was higher in Yemosho range (34.5 and 26.2) than in Maguba range 31.5 and 24.7) in both seasons of the year.
 

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