Biodiversity and socioeconomics in the city: a review of the luxury effect

Leong, Misha; Dunn, Robert R.; Trautwein, Michelle

doi:10.1098/rsbl.2018.0082

Cited by 187 publications

(153 citation statements)

References 60 publications

(122 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

126

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Attributes like income, ethnicity, and education have been shown to be the primary drivers of these landscape choices across multiple studies (Larsen and Harlan 2006, Larson et al 2009, Zhou et al 2009, Mel endez-Ackerman et al 2014. For instance, residents in wealthier portions of Phoenix and many other cities have greater access to diverse communities of regionally distinctive bird species (Hope et al 2003, Kinzig et al 2005, Lerman and Warren 2011, Leong et al 2018. Our previous studies in Phoenix also found increased satisfaction of residents in neighborhoods with greater desert bird diversity (Lerman and Warren 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

“…, Leong et al. ). General patterns emerging suggest that the inequalities to access fall along economic lines, whereby higher income sections of cities support higher species diversity (Hope et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Persistent income inequalities in access to native species. -Previous research has found significant disparities in the distribution of urban nature relative to the socioeconomic status and racial composition of urban neighborhoods (Hope et al 2003, Martin et al 2004, Strohbach et al 2009, Davis et al 2012, Leong et al 2018. General patterns emerging suggest that the inequalities to access fall along economic lines, whereby higher income sections of cities support higher species diversity (Hope et al 2003, Kinzig et al 2005, Melles 2005.…”

Section: Human Landscape Decisions and Potential Feedbacksmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…, Lerman and Warren , Leong et al. ). Our previous studies in Phoenix also found increased satisfaction of residents in neighborhoods with greater desert bird diversity (Lerman and Warren ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

The more things change: species losses detected in Phoenix despite stability in bird–socioeconomic relationships

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The science of urban ecology has increasingly grappled with the long‐term ramifications of a globally urbanized planet and the impacts on biodiversity. Some researchers have suggested that places with high species diversity in cities simply reflect an extinction debt of populations that are doomed to extinction but have not yet disappeared. The longitudinal studies conducted to date have found species composition shifting with urbanization but have not always documented continued species extirpations post‐urbanization. We used long‐term monitoring data on birds from the greater metropolitan area of Phoenix, Arizona, to measure changes in residential bird communities, species–habitat relationships, and human perceptions of bird species diversity over a five‐year period. Bird richness, occupancy, and abundance decreased, as did the percentage of respondents satisfied with bird variety in their neighborhoods. As in previous analyses for this region, we found that desert specialist species were associated with neighborhoods with xeric landscaping consisting of gravel groundcover, and drought‐tolerant, desert‐adapted vegetation. These species were also found in neighborhoods with high per capita income rates and lower percentages of renters and Hispanic/Latinx residents. Non‐native species were positively associated with neighborhoods containing mesic yards with grass and other water‐intensive vegetation. The proportions of yards in our surveyed neighborhoods with these distinct landscaping types likewise remained relatively stable over five‐year period. Although habitat–species relationships remained unchanged, we detected significant loss of species across the sampling period. Declines were not confined to desert specialist species but included generalist and invader species as well. The parallel reduction in residents’ satisfaction suggests that people perceive some aspect of this environmental degradation. Further investigation into the mechanisms underlying these species losses may reveal options for retaining some desert specialist species, and the uniqueness they contribute to urban fauna.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Human Landscape Decisions and Potential Feedbacksmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

The more things change: species losses detected in Phoenix despite stability in bird–socioeconomic relationships

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Two of the main mechanisms proposed to explain the Luxury Effect are: a greater investment in management of vegetation (both public and private) in richer areas; and, a greater demand for housing in greener and more biodiverse areas which thus increases property prices (Leong et al, 2018). These are not mutually exclusive.…”

Section: Mcgarry 2008) Within South Africa There Is Support For a mentioning

confidence: 99%

The relationship between wealth and biodiversity: A test of the Luxury Effect on bird species richness in the developing world

Chamberlain

Henry

Reynolds

et al. 2019

Global Change Biology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The Luxury Effect hypothesizes a positive relationship between wealth and biodiversity within urban areas. Understanding how urban development, both in terms of socio‐economic status and the built environment, affects biodiversity can contribute to the sustainable development of cities, and may be especially important in the developing world where current growth in urban populations is most rapid. We tested the Luxury Effect by analysing bird species richness in relation to income levels, as well as human population density and urban cover, in landscapes along an urbanization gradient in South Africa. The Luxury Effect was supported in landscapes with lower urbanization levels in that species richness was positively correlated with income level where urban cover was relatively low. However, the effect was reversed in highly urbanized landscapes, where species richness was negatively associated with income level. Tree cover was also positively correlated with species richness, although it could not explain the Luxury Effect. Species richness was negatively related to urban cover, but there was no association with human population density. Our model suggests that maintaining green space in at least an equal proportion to the built environment is likely to provide a development strategy that will enhance urban biodiversity, and with it, the positive benefits that are manifest for urban dwellers. Our findings can form a key contribution to a wider strategy to expand urban settlements in a sustainable way to provide for the growing urban population in South Africa, including addressing imbalances in environmental justice across income levels and racial groups.

show abstract

The importance of street trees to urban avifauna

Wood

Esaian

2020

Ecological Applications

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Street trees are public resources planted in a municipality's right-of-way and are a considerable component of urban forests throughout the world. Street trees provide numerous benefits to people. However, many metropolitan areas have a poor understanding of the value of street trees to wildlife, which presents a gap in our knowledge of conservation in urban ecosystems. Greater Los Angeles (LA) is a global city harboring one of the most diverse and extensive urban forests on the planet. The vast majority of the urban forest is nonnative in geographic origin, planted throughout LA following the influx of irrigated water in the early 1900s. In addition to its extensive urban forest, LA is home to a high diversity of birds, which utilize the metropolis throughout the annual cycle. The cover of the urban forest, and likely street trees, varies dramatically across a socioeconomic gradient. However, it is unknown how this variability influences avian communities. To understand the importance of street trees to urban avifauna, we documented foraging behavior by birds on native and nonnative street trees across a socioeconomic gradient throughout LA. Affluent communities harbored a unique composition of street trees, including denser and larger trees than lower-income communities, which in turn, attracted nearly five times the density of feeding birds. Foraging birds strongly preferred two native street-tree species as feeding substrates, the coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia) and the California sycamore (Platanus racemosa), and a handful of nonnative tree species, including the Chinese elm (Ulmus parvifolia), the carrotwood (Cupaniopsis anacardioides), and the southern live oak (Quercus virginiana), in greater proportion than their availability throughout the cityscape (two to three times their availability). Eighty-three percent of streettree species (n = 108, total) were used in a lower proportion than their availability by feeding birds, and nearly all were nonnative in origin. Our findings highlight the positive influence of street trees on urban avifauna. In particular, our results suggest that improved street-tree management in lower-income communities would likely positively benefit birds. Further, our study provides support for the high value of native street-tree species and select nonnative species as important habitat for feeding birds.

show abstract

Biodiversity and socioeconomics in the city: a review of the luxury effect

Cited by 187 publications

References 60 publications

The more things change: species losses detected in Phoenix despite stability in bird–socioeconomic relationships

The more things change: species losses detected in Phoenix despite stability in bird–socioeconomic relationships

The relationship between wealth and biodiversity: A test of the Luxury Effect on bird species richness in the developing world

The importance of street trees to urban avifauna

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About