Bird blitz: rapid survey of birds from Perau de Janeiro, Arvorezinha, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Resumo

The admirable red-belly toad, Melanophryniscus admirabilis, is a critically endangered species, a micro endemism of the Perau do Janeiro region, Arvorezinha, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. A joint initiative by the Non-Governmental Organization Instituto Curicaca and researchers of the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul aimed at increasing the knowledge on the biodiversity of the toad occurrence region, including information of the other biological groups. Here we aim to present the methodology and the results of this initiative regarding the bird fauna. We used an adaptation of the Bioblitz method, which we called Acadebioblitz, referring to the fact that the species inventory was done exclusively by biology students supported by teachers and biology professionals. We sampled six sites divided into four groups of six researchers, consisting of four undergraduate students and two specialists. The groups covered trails for approximately 8 hours a day, for 3 days consecutive, during the Austral Spring in 2017. Birds were sampled by visual or acoustic inspection. We registered144 species of birds, including two endangered: Xanthopsar flavus and Triclaria malachitacea; two endemic species and 19 migratory species. We conclude that this method was suitable for a quick survey of the study area, as the sampling effort was concentrated in a few days in the field. The Acadebioblitz was important in training students to detect and identify birds. In addition, we sampled a range of avifauna in the region, from different environments and with different degrees of threat, showing the importance of conservation of the region.