Nesting Habitat Suitability of the Kentish Plover in the Arid Lands of Xinjiang, China

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Wetlands in arid regions are crucial habitats for shorebirds, including the Kentish plover (Charadrius alexandrinus), and they are also heavily influenced by water resource management. This shorebird is very sensitive to its nesting habitat and serves as a good indicator for monitoring environmental changes in wetland ecosystems. Therefore, nesting habitat studies of the Kentish plover can reveal their survival status, habitat environment, and the threats they face, which are crucial for shorebird population recovery and habitat conservation in arid lands. The results of this study show that the primary nesting habitats of the plovers require multiple land use types near water bodies with little or no vegetation in order to cool their eggs and themselves with wet feathers, detect predators early, and adopt anti-predation strategies. It was also found that the proportion of suitable nesting habitat protected for Kentish plovers in the study area was low; therefore, regional wildlife and habitat protection is urgently needed in the study area. These findings can provide a reference for scientists to formulate practical habitat conservation and management measures for shorebirds in arid lands. ABSTRACT: Understanding the main ecological factors of the nesting habitat of shorebirds is of great significance in relation to their protection and habitat management. Habitat loss and change due to a lack of water threaten the biodiversity of shorebirds, with impacts likely to be most pronounced in arid lands. We collected the data of 144 nesting sites and 10 ecological factors during the breeding season from April to July each year in 2019 and 2020 in nine river districts in Xinjiang. The MaxEnt model was applied to assess the suitability of nesting habitats for Kentish plovers (Charadrius alexandrinus) in the study area to examine the main factors affecting their nesting habitat. The most suitable nesting habitats are mostly distributed in plain reservoirs in the middle part of the Northern Slope of the Tianshan Mountains, Ebinur Lake and its eastern position in the southwestern Junggar Basin, near Ulungur Lake of the Ulungur river area and the southern Irtysh river area. The distance from water, normalized difference vegetation index, mean temperature of the breeding season, slope, and land use were the main factors affecting the nesting habitat selection of Kentish plovers. It was found that the proportion of suitable nesting habitat protected for the Kentish plovers in the study area was low (851.66 km(2)), accounting for only 11.02% of the total suitable nesting habitat area. In view of the scarcity and importance of water bodies in arid lands and the lack of protection for Kentish plovers at present, it is suggested to strengthen the conservation and management of the regional shorebirds and their habitats by regulating and optimizing the allocation of water resources.