Diversity and evenness of birds during seasonal paddy farming practice in southwestern Sarawak

The influence of seasonal paddy farming activities on the paddy field environment and its composition of birds could be visually observed but has yet to be systematically studied and is still relatively understudied in Malaysian Borneo. Earlier research relied solely on point counts and not using line transects or mist nets for data collection could have resulted in missing and biased findings. Thus, this study aims to evaluate and compare species diversity and evenness of birds in different paddy stages in southwestern Sarawak with previous studies conducted in the region. We reported a higher species richness than previous reports from similar habitats, with 2,552 individuals recorded comprising 94 species from 43 families. Of these, 75.53% and 24.47% were terrestrial birds and waterbirds respectively. Seven residents are listed as “Near Threatened” and “Vulnerable” according to the IUCN Red List (2016-2022). The families of Ardeidae and Nectariniidae were the most abundant with eight and six species, respectively. We identified the planting stage and land preparation as the stage that respectively harbours more diverse and even bird communities in paddy fields of southwestern Sarawak. Our findings suggest that temporary land use changes do not necessarily alter paddy field bird diversity and assemblage. Small-patch paddy fields should not be overlooked because they offer additional foraging niches for water-dependent birds and opportunistic feeders, as well as serve as refuge for migratory waterbirds and vulnerable residents attributed to their habitat heterogeneity and microhabitat transition between paddy stages.