Anthropogenic Ecosystems: The Influence of People on Urban Wildlife Populations

Biodiversity in cities needs space: a meta‐analysis of factors determining intra‐urban biodiversity variation

“…A major challenge in urban ecology is clearly delineating the extent of urban landscapes. Regional differences in urban planning and construction make it difficult to find criteria that adequately describe urban landscapes at a global scale (Adams & Lindsey ) and common criteria are missing (United Nations ). Frequently, human population size or density as well as the relative cover of sealed surfaces are adopted as proxies.…”

Patterns and Trends in Urban Biodiversity and Landscape Design

“…In this subsection Homo sapiens are highlighted as the keystone species in urban systems. Humans modify nearly every aspect of our abiotic and biotic environment through the following behaviors: (1) constructing barriers to dispersal, (2) fragmenting habitats, (3) introducing non-native species, (4) introducing domestic pets, (5) altering ecosystem structure and processes, (6) altering disturbance regimes, (7) changing competitive relationships and trophic structure, and (8) generating multiple-scale effects (Adams and Lindsay 2011 ). An artifact of this modifi cation is the built infrastructure to sustain human activities.…”

“…For instance, buildings serve as nesting habitats for raptors, but also are obstacles to migratory birds. More than 100 million migrant and resident birds are estimated to be killed each year by colliding into windows (Adams and Lindsay 2011 ). Similarly, collisions with communication towers cause approximately 1.2 million birds deaths annually (Adams and Lindsay 2011 ).…”

“…More than 100 million migrant and resident birds are estimated to be killed each year by colliding into windows (Adams and Lindsay 2011 ). Similarly, collisions with communication towers cause approximately 1.2 million birds deaths annually (Adams and Lindsay 2011 ). Roads also pose a major threat to wildlife species, especially small and slow moving fauna (Forman and Alexander 1998 ).…”

“…For instance, both cliff swallows ( Hirundo pyrrhonota ) and cave swallows ( H . fulva ) have expanded their natural ranges by adopting bridges and culverts as nesting sites, and more than half of the 45 bat species in the United States use bridges as roosting sites (Adams and Lindsay 2011 ). Overall, the adaptability of a species to human infrastructure and landscape mosaic often determines its survivability in the urban landscape.…”