SUMMER HABITAT SELECTION BY HOUBARA BUSTARDS INTRODUCED IN CENTRAL SAUDI-ARABIA

Habitat selection by resident houbara bustards introduced outside the species' 'normal' breeding range in central Saudi Arabia was studied d uring the summer 1994. Relatively well-vegetated terrain with a low de nsity of tall (>1 m) shrubs was the preferred daytime habitat. At nigh t houbara roosted in relatively bare sites or, on moonlit nights, fora ged in habitats with relatively low vegetative density. Plant species richness was similar at sites intensively utilized by houbara and at r andomly selected sites. However, vegetative density was greater at uti lized sites than at random sites. Phenological diversity, specifically the availability of plants with green shoots and flowers, appeared to be the primary factor motivating houbara choice and was directly rela ted to the distribution of rainfall. Densities of tenebrionids and spi ders were higher in utilized than in random habitats, but the overall number of species and abundance of surface-active arthropods was simil ar. Sampling technique limited interpretation of the importance of art hropods in habitat selection, however. (C) 1997 Academic Press Limited .