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Coffee, one of the major traded commodities in the world, has economic value for rural livelihood and potentially as habitat for forest wildlife. Previous work in Central Kenya has demonstrated that when cultivated with shade trees, coffee farms can host high levels of bird diversity. However, questions of how the African bird communities in shade coffee farms compares to those in natural forest remained unanswered. Using three visits to each of 160-point count locations in natural forest (80) and shade coffee sites (80) in Central Kenya, we estimated bird abundance and species richness in natural forest and shade coffee. Specifically, we tested hypotheses that the abundance and diversity of birds in shade-coffee and natural forests varies by feeding guilds and forest-association status. We found that, compared to natural forest, shade coffee had higher bird abundance and species richness of carnivores, granivores, omnivores, and insectivores, including understory forest insectivores specifically. Frugivores and nectivores had similar abundance in forest and coffee, but were more species rich in forest and coffee, respectively. The abundance and species richness of forest specialists and forest visitors were higher in natural forest than in shade coffee, whereas forest generalists and birds with no forest association status were more abundant and species rich in shade coffee. Our study confirms the value of remnant native trees within coffee plantations for the persistence and conservation of avian communities, while also clarifying that some groups of birds are reliant on natural forests and unlikely to be conserved in shade coffee farms.

Understanding the habitat selection and structure of a species is critical for developing evidence-centered conservation actions. Sharpe’s Longclaw Macronyx sharpei, a passerine bird endemic to Kenya, is threatened by reductions in habitat size and quality that have left it inhabiting a small and highly fragmented range. From January to June 2016 we investigated the abundance and density of Sharpe’s Longclaw in Marania farm located in Meru county in the northern sector of Mt. Kenya, where no previous study had been done. Population abundance and density were determined using the flush and count method. We observed that these birds were exclusively found in grasslands, being most abundant in habitats of short grass with tussocks, and less so in areas with tall grass. This habitat specificity indicates a key requirement for survival of Sharpe’s Longclaw populations in this area. We recommend surveys in and around Marania farm to determine the distribution of suitable habitats for this species, and that the farm be designated an Important Bird Area. Further studies should also focus on determining the intensity of grazing that is compatible with conservation of Sharpe’s Longclaw populations.

The biological condition gradient (BCG), a scientific framework that describes the change in ecosystem characteristics in response to human-induced levels of stressors, was modified and used to characterize watershed habitats in the Upper Tana River watershed, Kenya. The inbuilt utilities of BCG, including its simplicity, versatility, and its robust nature, allowed its use by seven taxonomic groups of macroinvertebrates, diatoms, fish, herpetofauna (amphibians and reptiles), plants, macrofungi, and birds to assess and monitor landscape conditions in both terrestrial and aquatic habitats. The biological data were described using taxa abundance distribution measures followed by multivariate analyses to determine their relationship with water or soil quality and thereafter assessment of taxa tolerant levels in response to environmental stress and disturbances. Preliminary findings reported that the taxonomic groups complemented each other, with each taxonomic group reliably assessing ecological conditions to a certain degree that supported assigning all 36 sampled sites into BCG tiers. The BCG models developed for all taxonomic groups assisted in the identification and selection of taxa indicating varying levels of landscape conditions. These taxa, referred to as flagship or indicator taxa, assist in simplifying the BCG model and, hence, are possible for use by parataxonomists or ordinary citizens to assess and monitor the ecological health of habitats under consideration. Furthermore, the capability of BCG models to assess landscape conditions shows how they can be used to identify important habitats for conservation, direct investment for restoration, and track progress.