Understanding how agricultural landscapes influence bird communities is critical for reconciling
biodiversity conservation with working lands. We conducted year-round acoustic monitoring in
three almond orchards in California’s Central Valley, located near Grayson, Escalon, and Salida,
across four seasons (Spring 2024 to Winter 2025). Using presence-absence data derived from
daily acoustic detections above a confidence threshold, we evaluated spatiotemporal patterns in
species richness, community composition, and turnover.

Generalized linear modeling revealed significant effects of both site and season on daily species
richness (p < 0.001), with Grayson exhibiting the highest mean richness overall. Salida showed
strong seasonal peaks in spring and summer, likely reflecting pulses of migratory activity. In
contrast, Escalon supported a more stable community across seasons. Seasonal effects were
especially pronounced, with Spring 2024 supporting the greatest richness overall (p < 0.0001).
Species accumulation curves indicated a broader species pool at Grayson, suggesting higher
habitat heterogeneity or resource availability.

Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) and PERMANOVA analyses confirmed that
community composition differed significantly by site and season (p < 0.001). Dissimilarity
analyses further showed greater species turnover between seasons than within seasons at all three
orchards. These results highlight the dynamic nature of bird communities in these working
landscapes.

These findings indicate that bird community diversity in almond orchards varies spatially and seasonally, which may be associated with habitat and migratory phenology characteristics.
Monitoring these patterns can inform wildlife-friendly management practices in intensively
farmed regions.