Human activities act as a filter, reducing species richness and homogenizing bird communities, while landscapes with connected, heterogeneous habitats such as forests, rivers, and open areas support more species and greater functional diversity.

Key species like collared scops-owls and Western hooded pittas show clearer distinctions in natural habitats than in settlements, highlighting the impact of habitat context on species identity.

Policy implications call for maintaining Important Biodiversity Areas and involving local communities in forest management to balance conservation with livelihoods.

Phylogenetic clustering is strongest in natural habitats, suggesting disturbance inside forests removes sensitive species and leaves closely related, disturbance-tolerant groups such as flycatchers, babblers, and warblers.

Functional clustering is higher in human-dominated areas, indicating surviving birds share similar ecological roles and traits due to disturbance from farming, deforestation, and infrastructure development.

The study stresses conserving habitat heterogeneity and restoring corridors, especially along rivers and forest ridges, to maintain metapopulation connectivity and bird resilience amid development.

Researchers analyzed 238 bird species across anthropogenic and natural habitats in the Parsa-Koshi Complex over more than a year, using computer models to relate diversity to human activity and landscape patterns.

A Nepalese study finds that human-dominated habitats in Nepal’s southern plains host fewer bird species and simpler communities, while natural and mosaic habitats support greater diversity and a wider range of ecological roles.