Density and habitat requirements of red-legged partridge on Elba Island (Tuscan Archipelago, Italy)

The red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa, Linnaeus 1758, Phasianidae) is a common game bird in Europe and it is classified as SPEC 2 (Species of European Conservation Concern), that is, a species with unfavorable conservation status due to a marked population decline. Loss of suitable habitat and hunting management are considered among the major causes of its decline. Such a decline can be also related to agriculture intensification, changes in agricultural practices and the abandonment of less productive lands. Habitat suitability models are an important management tool to define the potential distribution range of a given species, design a protected area network, and plan appropriate management actions and evaluate their effects. This study was conducted on Elba Island (Tuscany) in spring 2011 to define the habitat factors that affect the A. rufa distribution in a typical Mediterranean landscape. On this island the species is declining, as it is in other areas of Europe. We carried out point counts in a survey stratified according to vegetation. We formulated Resource Probability Selection Functions following a presence vs. availability design by Binary Logistic Regression Analysis to obtain a map of potential distribution of the species. We observed that the red-legged partridge distribution was mainly linked to the natural habitat with garrigue and perennial meadows, whereas woody landscape had a negative effect. To stop the species decline on the island habitat improvement actions are needed, such as the cutting of dense vegetation to create open areas.