Interaction Networks among Birds and Other Organisms in Forests

Abstract

I reviewed the studies on indirect effects and interaction networks among birds and other organisms in forests. Birds facilitated the growth and survival of plants through predation on herbivore insects, while plants changed the avian foraging behaviour through defense against herbivore insects. Predatory arthropods such as ants also changed these tritrophic interactions. Whether birds preferred the fruits infested by insects or bacteria influenced the seed dispersal by birds. Long-term studies on population dynamics showed that the density of birds changed through the interaction between carnivorous mammals and the organisms, which did not interact with birds directly. The biotic interactions could be influenced through environmental changes that had been produced or modified by organisms including birds.