The Role of Environmental Factors on Species Richness Pattern of Birds in Sarakhs

Determining the main factors of environmental factors on species richness pattern of birds is one of the most important issues in conservation ecology. Using this information could have a crucial role in implementing the environmental plans, managing and anticipating future situations. A set of 15 factors including environmental factors, land cover, and topographic variable were studied for determine the role of environmental factors on the species richness patterns of birds in Sarakhs. Sampling of birds had been completed at 12 stations during spring and summer of 2012. In total 107 species of birds belong to 11 orders and 32 families were identified, of which Passeriformes with 66% and Ciconiiformes and Caprimulgiformes with 9% showed the highest and lowest level of species richness. The species richness maps were also prepared with GIS software. The most species richness pattern was concentrated on north– west and south- east of the region. The results of the study of environmental factors, using SAM software application, showed that the rain is the most important factor for explaining the species richness patterns of birds in Sarakhs.