Transect bird survey with data synthesis from multiple transects in the central Arizona-Phoenix area: period 1998 to 2000

Bird surveys are conducted along transect lines located in various locations within the CAP LTER study area, with particular emphasis on golf courses, new and old residential areas, and desert remnants. Birds are being surveyed by both LTER researchers and by local interest groups and individuals (e.g., Maricopa Audubon Society). A new interactive bird population web site is now posted. One can obtain results for bird censuses that have been going on since 1 May 1998. Volunteers in combination with LTER birders have been censusing birds in over 70 transects located throughout the Phoenix metropolitan area. The goals of this project are (1) to document the changes in avian richness and abundance over time and space, and (2) to determine the biotic/abiotic factors and socioeconomic/political factors that cause these changes to occur. We have developed a census protocol and have started conducting bird censuses in four key habitats in the CAP LTER study area.