Habitat preference of endangered Eastern Iberian Reed Buntings Emberiza schoeniclus witherbyi

Capsule Careful management is required to maintain or create habitats with the correct proportions of rush with reeds that are preferred by this subspecies.

Aims To determine the habitat requirements of Eastern Iberian (Western Iberian Reed Buntings were not included in the study) Reed Buntings Emberiza schoeniclus witherbyi, a subspecies endemic to a few marshes in France, Spain and Morocco, with a population of 254–360 breeding pairs.

Methods Twenty-five wetlands in Spain were surveyed and presence/absence of Iberian Reed Buntings was deteremined together with data on 41 environmental variables. The relationships between the birds and habitat data were investigated using glm.

Results Proportion of rush with reeds, proportion of reed–bulrush patches and perimeter length of rush–reed patches, were the variables that primarily explained the present distribution of Eastern Iberian Reed Buntings. Other vegetation classes traditionally associated with the presence of the Eastern Iberian Reed Buntings, such as sedges, were not found to be important in the selected models.

Conclusion Conservation planning and management guidelines for this subspecies should focus on encouraging these specific-vegetation parameters. Flood control and grazing are proposed as the best practices that will favour these vegetation variables and avoid simplification of the plant community.