Overlooked plant diversity in urban streetscapes in Oulu and Yokohama

Heikkinen, Mirka K.; Iwachido, Yuki; Sun, Xi; Maehara, Kaho; Kawata, Mayuko; Yamamoto, Sumire; Tsuchihashi, Yui; Sasaki, Takehiro

doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2023.e02621

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 47 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…2 By intentionally introducing or accepting the presence of synanthropic flora (spontaneous plants) by the people in charge, the resilience of plantings is increased [5,6], and so does the biodiversity [7,8]. This kind of vegetation reduces ecological and financial costs, it increases the resilience of urban vegetation communities [9].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Spontaneous plant species are used in the design of larger-scale public green areas [10,11], but not exclusively. For example, smaller patches are provided by spontaneous greenery along roads, creating diverse landscapes [8], also colonizing trackways [12]. Synanthropic flora appears on green roofs as a result of cessation of maintenance, causing wilderness by default [7,13], or it is accepted during the maintenance process [5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Preferences of Adults for Synanthropic Flora in the Sustainable Development of Polish Cities’ Green Areas

Fornal-Pieniak,

Stangierska-Mazurkiewicz,

Kamionowski

et al. 2024

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Synanthropic flora (weeds, spontaneously developed plants) are plants that accompany humans, appearing as a result of anthropopressure as well as after its cessation. The potential of synanthropic flora in shaping green areas usually brings many measurable benefits that depend on land management in cities. The study aimed to determine the preferences and attitudes of adults towards synanthropic flora in settlement units. The article presents survey results from 447 city residents. The obtained results were statistically analyzed using the k-means clustering method to identify segments of respondents with similar attitudes and preferences toward synanthropic flora. Mann-Whitney U tests were employed to determine statistical differences in the demographic variables among the analyzed clusters of respondents. Additionally, multiple regression analysis was performed to identify the opinions and attitudes towards synanthropic flora, that may influence their greater acceptance in the vicinity of residential areas. The results obtained in multiple regression allow for the statement that the respondent’s evaluation of the level of support for the introduction of more synanthropic vegetation into urban greenery (Yw) grows with the increase of acceptance of synanthropic plants occurrence in surroundings. Respondents’ opinions on the subject of the presence of synanthropic plants were studied using such variables concerning: synanthropic vegetation found in turfgrasses has a positive impact on the visual attractiveness of a site (X1), synanthropic plant communities present themselves better than others (X2), presence of synanthropic vegetation in an estate improves the quality of life in that location (X3), introduction of synanthropic flora into estate arrangements is a positive (X4), support for the use of synanthropic flora for educational purposes - as elements of playgrounds or in the form of environmental workshops (X5). Residents’ acceptance of synanthropic flora in green areas is at a relatively high level.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preferences of Adults for Synanthropic Flora in the Sustainable Development of Polish Cities’ Green Areas

Fornal-Pieniak,

Stangierska-Mazurkiewicz,

Kamionowski

et al. 2024

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Urban pavements as a novel habitat for wild bees and other ground-nesting insects

Weber,

Noël,

Sickel

et al. 2024

Urban Ecosyst

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Municipal authorities around the world have come to recognize the importance of making conservation and restoration a priority. Multiple urban restoration programs now foster insects and other pollinators through planting and sowing flowering plants, many of them within residential areas. But residents are not only walking next to pollinators visiting flowering sidewalk grass verges, they are also walking on top of them, nesting in the cracks and interstices of urban pavements.Combining morphological and molecular monitoring schemes, we conducted a survey of urban pavements at twelve locations across Berlin and found that pavements can foster a surprising number and quantity of soil dwelling insects—in particular wild bees and wasps. Pavements located within 200 m to an insect-friendly flower garden were covered with significantly more nests of wild bees and solitary wasps, and showed higher species richness of these groups, while the degree of sealed surfaces in the surrounding had no effect per se. This underlines the positive impact that insect-friendly gardens can have for pollinators and other insects, even in highly sealed areas. Also, it shows the potential of cobbled pavements as valuable nesting sites in highly sealed urban areas. We provide a list of 55 species of ground-nesting Hymenoptera found in Berlin pavements, including 28 species of wild bees and 22 apoid wasps. In our study, the molecular approach only detected three Hymenoptera species and did not yield comparable results to classical monitoring. Nonetheless, using eDNA methods might be a promising tool for further studying soil nesting insects in the future, and to gain insights into the web of life in urban pavements.

show abstract

Overlooked plant diversity in urban streetscapes in Oulu and Yokohama

Cited by 2 publications

References 47 publications

Preferences of Adults for Synanthropic Flora in the Sustainable Development of Polish Cities’ Green Areas

Preferences of Adults for Synanthropic Flora in the Sustainable Development of Polish Cities’ Green Areas

Urban pavements as a novel habitat for wild bees and other ground-nesting insects

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About