Abstract
In order to suggest desirable openspaces in terms of biodiversity in urban riparian, it was studied that relationship between wintering avifauna and habitat structures and landuse around study sites. 24 study sites were located on 2 urban riparian areas in northwest part of Chiba Prefecture, Japan. As a result, significant negative correlations of the number of water bird species with the slant of water edge were found. Considering avifauna composition, the 24 sites were classified into 2 types by TWINSPAN. Canonical discriminant analysis indicated that the area of water, area of the artificial structures can interpret the classifications by TWINSPAN. The results showed that the waterside such as a sharp slant has a negative influence on the number of water bird species and the area of artificial structures affected some birds. This study revealed the importance of the area of waters and the waterside form for water species. In planning the form of rivers regarding the preservation of avifauna, it is important to consider the riparian environment, such as vegetation and the structure of the water's edge. In addition, it is necessary to pay attention to the relationship between riparian areas and these surroundings.
