The biodiversity in mountainous ecosystems is high but is threatened by
rapid environmental change. Urbanization and other anthropogenic factors
in the mountains surrounding cities can affect land use and spatial
fragmentation. Moreover, patterns of habitat are closely related to
elevation and have a major effect on montane biodiversity. The aim of
this study was to analyze the effects of spatial fragmentation on the
vertical distribution pattern of bird diversity by characterizing the
structure of the bird community, species diversity, and landscape
factors at different altitudes. From 2016 to 2019, this study made a
four-years continuous monitoring of the breeding biric belts. The result
indicated Mount Tai harbored a high bird diversity. Bird richness,
abundance and Shannon-Wiener index decreased with latitude in Mount Tai.
Moreover, the composition of bird communities varied along altitudinal
gradients and supported some special species in different elevational
bands. Road density, number of habitat patches, patch density, and the
percentage of forest significantly affected bird diversity. The effect
of patch density was higher compared with other landscape factors.
Sufficient habitat and more patches in the low-mountain belt supported
higher bird diversity. The middle-mountain belt and high-mountain belt
showed contrasting patterns. Our results highlight the effects of
ongoing urbanization and human activities on montane biodiversity and
emphasize the need for artificial habitats in the mountains surrounding
cities to be managed.