Figure 1 - uploaded by Moses Shimba
Content may be subject to copyright.
Map showing the location of the study sites in Dar es Salaam city (source: Map data ?2015 Google)
Source publication
Nest success of the Indian House Crow Corvus splendens was studied in the urban area of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, in late March to early May 2011. The study investigated nest success of the Indian House Crow in different tree species with varying canopy covers and heights. Fifty-five active nests and 38 inactive nests were observed and inspected fro...
Context in source publication
Similar publications
Fruit yield of mango can be drastically reduced or even lost due to infection of powdery mildew caused by Oidium mangiferae. It is widespread disease at the flowering stage of crop and even newly developed fruits drop down. Considering the endemic nature of disease under Konkan conditions the present investigation was carried out. In present study...
Citations
... C. splendens also posed a threat to humans as there were cases of bird strikes on airplanes, snatching food and swooping at people walking in parks and streets (Suliman et al. 2011;Shimba and Jonah 2017). C. splendens can become a disease carrier for humans and domestic animals (Suliman et al. 2011) as they can also be infected by the same pathogens such as Campylobacter spp., Escherichia coli and Salmonella spp. ...
The house crow (Corvus splendens) is globally recognised as a pest. It is an invasive species that can populate Malaysia's urban landscape and urban coastal areas. C. splendens was imported from Sri Lanka to Klang, Malaysia, in the 1890s to control caterpillars on coffee plantations. After a few decades, crows are able to adapt and co-exist with humans as a result of significant growth in the human population and urbanization. These urban pests are important due to the large volume of faecal droppings on buildings and near human dwellings. In other parts of the world, house crows can transmit pathogens and diseases such as chlamydiosis, salmonellosis, colibacillosis, and avian tuberculosis. They also carry human pathogens such as Salmonella spp., Shigella serotypes, Vibrionaceae spp., Newcastle disease virus (NDV), avian influenza virus (AIV) and West Nile virus (WNV) that can be transmitted to humans through their faeces. The first AIV transmission from birds to humans that caused a pandemic was alarming because of the risk of AIV and other avian virus transmission from birds. This prompted investigations into crow populations in urban centres. This review details the potential of C. splendens to spread AIV, NDV and WNV in Malaysia's highly urbanized areas.
... Europe accommodates raven, carrion, hooded, rook and jackdaw while in Africa there are pied crow Corvus albus, Somali Crow Corvus edithae, cape crow Corvus capens, white-necked raven Corvus albicollis, Fan-tailed Raven Corvus rhipidurus and Piapiac Ptilostomus afer and the invasive species house crow Corvus splendens [5] [6] [7]. Apart from the mentioned crow species, house crow is one of the most successful exotic crows in Africa being introduced to Tanzania since the 1890s on the island of Zanzibar as garbage scavengers from the Indian Subcontinent [8]- [13]. ...
... Since then, the house crow population has continued to expand in the coastal regions including Morogoro as recorded in 1999 [13] [14] [15] and progressing inland [16] [17], now in Dodoma, Singida, Tabora (Nzega), Kilimanjaro, Manyara and Arusha [5] [6]. In Dar es Salaam, direct impacts from house crows have been studied and demonstrated that numbers are tremendously increasing [13]. ...
... Since then, the house crow population has continued to expand in the coastal regions including Morogoro as recorded in 1999 [13] [14] [15] and progressing inland [16] [17], now in Dodoma, Singida, Tabora (Nzega), Kilimanjaro, Manyara and Arusha [5] [6]. In Dar es Salaam, direct impacts from house crows have been studied and demonstrated that numbers are tremendously increasing [13]. [15] reported the numbers of house crow as about 20,000 individuals, likely to date this number has continued to increase since then. ...
... It prefers trees having large crown and at a certain height to prevent accessibility by humans and to see food more easily. However, Shimba and Jonah (2017) have reported that nesting success of house crow does not depend on height, canopy and tree species. In Singapore, they prefered to nest in Peltophorum pterocarpum and Samanea saman (Soh et al., 2002). ...
... It prefers trees having large crown and at a certain height to prevent accessibility by humans and to see food more easily. However, Shimba and Jonah (2017) have reported that nesting success of house crow does not depend on height, canopy and tree species. In Singapore, they prefered to nest in Peltophorum pterocarpum and Samanea saman (Soh et al., 2002). ...
House crow (Corvus splendens) is a native species of the Indian subcontinent. It shows greater tractability as it can easily adapt to new environment where food supply and garbage are found in abundance. Their intelligence is also acknowledged duly. They are also obligate to human presence. We can assume that “where there is human, there is house crow essentially”. The present article documents the ecology of this bird in Dir Lower, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The house crow population has reached a considerable size in the study area. The species has colonized both rural and urban areas and has dispersed throughout the study area. One of the most important factors for its population increase is the increased number of dumping sites in the area.
... Often the species has been dubbed invasive, with their control measures being described. Some of these include control of invasive house crows in Singapore [19]; the study about the prospect of house crows as invasive species in Ismailia, Egypt [20]; the nest success of invasive house crows in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania [21] and the house crows as a threat to New Zealand [22]. However, publications related to a systematic research on their declining population are not available. ...
Birds including house sparrows and house crows have always been considered as ecosystem indicators reflecting the health of the environment. Complete absence of a species (that was previously abundant) is not desirable from the ecologist's point of view. Anthropogenic activities like urbanization and deforestation have peaked in recent years resulting in the loss of biodiversity. This is not solely linked to the number of species but also the interactions among them that shapes up the ecosystem. The current study focuses on the sudden disappearance of house sparrows and house crows. The study area chosen was Chinsurah, West Bengal, India, as the place has undergone rapid urban growth in the last two decades with simultaneous erosion of the sparrow and crow populations. The urban sprawl of Chinsurah in the past few years was studied using satellite imagery data (from Google earth) and Landsat data (from GLCF) captured on a temporal scale. The study area was surveyed for documenting the preferable habitats of birds where they were found roosting. A comparative study of the architecture of the old and new/renovated buildings shows that buildings with modern designs lack suitable nesting sites. In addition, the loss of tree cover deprives the birds of their foraging grounds. Bird species like common myna, greater coucal, Indian treepie, black drongo and black kite have been observed living close to human settlements in the study area. They are known to exert predatory and/or competition pressures on house sparrows and house crows. Other factors affecting the sparrow and crow populations were also investigated. The declining bird species seems to affect the urban ecosystem by causing shifts in ecological balance. This can, however, be minimized by considering the ecological factors while planning urban expansion. Therefore, future studies should not be aimed solely to conserve the biodiversity but also to preserve the ecosystem balance and prevent the loss of another species through sustainable urban growth.
... In Tanzania, the species was deliberately introduced in Zanzibar during the colonial rule as an urban garbage scavenger but has rapidly spread to Mtwara and other areas along the coast (Mackworth-Praed and Grant 1960). Nowadays the species has spread into the whole coastal area in the mainland of Tanzania (Shimba and Jonah 2017). A population has become established in Morogoro since 1997 (Wium-Andersen and Reid 2005). ...
Alien invasive species (AIS) are species that have become established in areas outside of their native range and cause harm to human health, the economy, and the environment in Tanzania. Some deliberate initiatives against invasive species have been implemented within the country, mainly including the ongoing establishment of a guiding National Strategy and Action Plan to Manage Invasive Species (NSAMIS). Along with several key national laws governing the management of AIS in the country, Tanzania has signed various international treaties, such as the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), as well as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora (CITES). However, hundreds of alien plant species have been introduced into Tanzania over the past few decades. The main factors of introduction and spread are mainly human‐induced, such as for agriculture, gardening, energy sources, fisheries and aquaculture, construction, trade, tourism, and transportation. In total, Tanzania has about 154 invasive and potentially invasive species that have been documented in various documents and publications, including online databases, journal papers, and books. Some of these species have caused major impacts in the country. The main observed impacts include loss of native fauna and flora, wildlife and livestock forage reduction, and loss of land for agriculture, which have increased conflicts between farmers and pastoralists; blockage of access to water resources and fishing areas; as well as health problems in human and livestock. Although a few species (e.g. water hyacinth) have effective control approaches, the spread is still an intense and major threat to human life and biodiversity across the country. As the first step to control and monitor specific pathways, it is necessary to establish the extent of AIS spread and impacts in the country. Specific control approaches need to be organized and institutionalized.
... Across Africa, how bird species are responding to urbanisation and associated threats and opportunities, is very mixed: population declines for Hooded Vulture Necrosyrtes monachus (Mullié et al. 2017), dietary adaptation for Crowned Eagle Stephanoaetus coronatus (McPherson et al. 2015;van der Meer et al. 2018), earlier breeding for Marabou Stork Leptoptilos crumenifer (Pomeroy and Kibuule 2017) and Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus ) and facilitation of the alien urban invader the Indian House Crow Corvus splendens (Shimba and Jonah 2017), are some examples of the numerous varied responses. Additionally, Chamberlain et al. (2018) showed long-term changes in bird functional feeding guilds in response to an urban gradient in Kampala, Uganda, where insectivores and granivores were found to have declined, whereas the most common predators and scavengers benefitted from the inability of municipal waste management to keep pace with growth from the human population, hence providing more potential food resources. ...
High human population growth and rapid urbanisation, particularly in Africa, have led to an increased interest in the impacts of this land-use change on bird communities. The African Bird Atlas Project, where species presence lists are collected in pentads, is a valuable source of data with which to explore the extent of these impacts. Here, for the first-time, we test for differences in species richness patterns across 50 matched pentad pairs from sub-Saharan Africa classified as either urban (or semi-urban) and rural. We found that species richness was lowest in pentads classified as urban (mean ± SD: 132 ± 59 species), compared with rural (172 ± 54). However, species richness was similar, compared with rural pentads, when levels of urbanisation were maintained at intermediate levels (semi-urban: 141 ± 69). Surprisingly, we found no significant differences in functional diversity measures between any land-use categories. Across most major dietary guilds (carnivores, herbivores, insectivores, granivores) species richness was lower in urbanised pentads and species were often small. However, the overall biomass of these guilds was similar between urbanised and non-urbanised areas, indicating the presence of common urban exploiter species. This resulted in no differences in functional diversity overall. Pollinators and piscivores showed little difference in metrics between rural and urban pentads. According to a model of the functional traits we consider, an African urban exploiter species is best described by being a scavenger, and less likely to be a habitat specialist, but fill a variety of niches. The urban spatial planning implications are that rare and range-restricted species in proximity to cities, as well as large bird species, will require particular attention and conservation measures as African cities continue to expand. Species richness could be maintained with intermediate levels of urban infrastructure development.
... It prefers trees having large crown and at a certain height to prevent accessibility by humans and to see food more easily. However, Shimba and Jonah (2017) have reported that nesting success of house crow does not depend on height, canopy and tree species. In Singapore, they prefered to nest in Peltophorum pterocarpum and Samanea saman (Soh et al., 2002). ...
House crow (Corvus splendens) is a native species of the Indian subcontinent. It shows greater tractability
as it can easily adapt to new environment where food supply and garbage are found in abundance. Their
intelligence is also acknowledged duly. They are also obligate to human presence. We can assume that
“where there is human, there is house crow essentially”. The present article documents the ecology of this
bird in Dir Lower, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The house crow population has reached a considerable
size in the study area. The species has colonized both rural and urban areas and has dispersed throughout
the study area. One of the most important factors for its population increase is the increased number of
dumping sites in the area.
... The House Crow is one of the species that has established well around the world (Ryall, 2002;Brook et al., 2003;Suliman et al., 2011). It was introduced unintentionally to various countries, often on ships as a 'hitchhiker' to countries such as Tanzania (Shimba and Jonah, 2016), Socotra Island (Yemen) in 1995 and Malaysia (Suliman et al. 2011). It was intentionally introduced to some countries to clean garbage, and to control caterpillars, and ticks on livestock (Brook et al., 2003;Fraser et al., 2015). ...
... House Crows are found in large numbers, especially in populated areas along the coast and in urban parks, cities and towns where there is anthropogenic waste food (Brook et al., 2003;Wilson et al., 2015). Although some House Crows are abundant inland in some countries (Wilson et al., 2015;Shimba and Jonah, 2016), generally areas along the coast have more House Crows, as these areas are generally ports of entry where crows are introduced via ships (Suliman et al., 2011;Wilson et al., 2015). Wilson et al. (2015) reported that House Crows prefer contaminated areas because of the abundance of anthropogenic food littering, garbage and poor sanitation. ...
... Wilson et al. (2015) reported that House Crows prefer contaminated areas because of the abundance of anthropogenic food littering, garbage and poor sanitation. A survey by Shimba (2011) in Dar es Salaam city, Tanzania, estimated that there were 800,000 House Crows in areas where there was poor sanitation. This species to date is continuing to spread because it is an opportunistic species with catholic feeding habits, and it can survive in a range of environmental conditions. ...
This 381-paged book covers the biology, ecology, impact and management of 34 common alien invasive species, with reviews on the history and context of avian introductions and invasions in five major regions (Oceania, Africa, Europe (including the Middle East, Asia and South America)), as well as management challenges and the potential of citizen science for monitoring alien birds. The book pitches at the introductory level and is ideal for readers to gain a quick and comprehensive view of the current status of global avian invasions. It has brought the records and research of avian invasion one step ahead of other alien invasive animal taxa. Many chapters contain distribution maps and data tables on the diet and morphology of the species, providing a good reference for the species and its management issues. Each chapter also contains a rich list of references that could help readers dive further into the topic.
... For some of the invasive avian species, climatic suitability alone cannot explain species occurrence and colonisation as some are highly social and have evolved to live in association with humans, e.g. the house crow (Owino et al. 2004), the house sparrow (Shaw et al. 2008), and the rose-ringed parakeet (Butler 2003;Hart and Downs 2014). In addition, avian species introduced in areas, either rural or urban, where human habitation exists generally provides them with supplemental food, space, and shelter (Layton 2009;Shimba and Jonah 2017), and those with relatively large potential climatic suitability may pose a relatively high risk of becoming invasive. However, climatic matching and/or species distribution modelling alone cannot fully justify the impact associated with species but can be applied with impact scoring assessment to quantify their impacts as suggested in other studies (Keller and Kumschick 2017). ...
... For example, the airstrike damage by mallard ducks was estimated at over US$100 million, and about US$200,000 was spent in clean-up costs associated with common starlings in Omaha, Nebraska, USA (Linz et al. 2007;Cummings 2016). Species such as the house crow and the rock dove have been reported to pollute various anthropogenic infrastructure and water bodies with their excreta (Xi 2009;Sacchi et al. 2002;Jerolmack 2008;Shimba and Jonah 2017) resulting in more financial expenditure. For example, in the USA alone, feral pigeons in some urban areas have caused impacts of * US$1.1 million annually (Pimentel et al. 2005). ...
... The impacts on forest production by these seven species were relatively low because most of the alien invasive bird species examined have adapted to live, roost, and feed on food around human habitation. This included species such as the common starling (Mennechez and Clergeau 2001), house crow (Shimba and Jonah 2017), rock dove (Spennemann and Watson 2017), and house sparrow (Magudu and Downs 2015). ...
Globally, various avian species have been introduced accidentally and deliberately by humans through different pathways. Some of these species were able to establish, multiply, and become invasive. In this study, we identified areas that are climatically suitable for seven introduced invasive bird species and assessed the environmental and socio-economic impacts associated with the selected bird species in South Africa. We used present distribution records to predict potential climatic suitability distributions and used the Generic Impact Scoring Scheme to assess the impacts associated with seven invasive bird species in South Africa. We found that all the seven species were climatically suitable to South Africa and Passer domesticus, Sturnus vulgaris, and Anas platyrhynchos each had relatively large climatic suitability distributions. The climatic suitability for all the species was within their occurrence ranges in and outside South Africa. For impact assessments, we found that all seven selected species had impacts, with A. platyrhynchos, Acridotheres tristis, Columba livia, and Psittacula krameri having the highest overall impacts respectively. The socio-economic impact ranked higher than environmental impact for all species. The socio-economic impacts were frequently through agricultural production and human infrastructure, while the environmental impact was mostly through impacts of birds on other animals and competition. These need to be incorporated in decision-making and eradication plans for these alien invasive birds in South Africa.
