Predictors of Mammalian Diversity in the New York Metropolitan Area

Abstract

Urbanization can have profound consequences for mammalian biodiversity and is thought to contribute to patterns of species richness and community composition. Large cities can be particularly challenging environments for mammals because these habitats are often impacted by anthropogenic perturbations, including high human population density, fragmented habitats, and extensive human development. In this study, we investigated mammalian species richness, Shannon–Wiener diversity, and evenness in the most densely populated region in the United States: the New York metropolitan area. Specifically, we deployed camera traps from 2015 to 2019 to investigate six drivers of mammalian diversity across 31 greenspaces: (1) human population density, (2) patch size, (3) habitat type, (4) surrounding land cover, (5) geographical barriers to dispersal, and (6) habitat heterogeneity. We found that mammal community composition is largely influenced by a multitude of anthropogenic factors. Specifically, mammal species richness was higher in greenspaces with larger patch sizes and lower in greenspaces surrounded by more development. Moreover, Shannon–Wiener diversity and evenness were higher in urban natural landscapes than human-altered landscapes. In a subset of data that only included carnivores, we found that carnivore Shannon–Wiener diversity was higher in urban natural habitats and in sites with lower human population densities. Finally, we found that geographical barriers to dispersal contributed to both patterns of mammalian diversity and patterns of carnivore diversity: mammal taxa richness, Shannon–Wiener diversity, and evenness were all significantly higher on the continent (Bronx/Westchester) than on Long Island. These results suggest that preserving urban greenspaces is important for maintaining both mammalian and carnivore biodiversity and that management of mammals in cities should concentrate on maintaining large, connected, natural greenspaces.

Nature-based Solutions for Urban Resilience and Human Health

“…An environmental resources survey obtains environmental data and clarifies habitat characteristics based on on-site investigation, map surveying, mapping, etc. Through literature reference (Arques et al, 2014;Bradfield et al, 2022;Callaghan et al, 2018;Cayuela et al, 2020;Churko et al, 2020;Curzel et al, 2021;Fidino et al, 2020;Fleury and Galetti, 2006;Gallo et al, 2017;Lerman et al, 2021;Matthies et al, 2017;Miller et al, 2022;Narango et al, 2017;Nielsen et al, 2014;Rico-Silva et al, 2021;Taylor et al, 2016;Yates et al, 1997), we determined the commonly used ecological variables around the species occurrence points, as shown in Table 3. In addition, we can calculate variance inflation factors for environmental variables (VIF, Quinn, and Keough, 2002) to avoid high multicollinearity affecting analysis results (Guisan and Zimmermann, 2000).…”

Research progress on animal habitat constructions from the perspective of urban biodiversity improvement

“…An environmental resources survey obtains environmental data and clarifies habitat characteristics based on on-site investigation, map surveying, mapping, etc. Through literature reference (Arques et al, 2014;Bradfield et al, 2022;Callaghan et al, 2018;Cayuela et al, 2020;Churko et al, 2020;Curzel et al, 2021;Fidino et al, 2020;Fleury and Galetti, 2006;Gallo et al, 2017;Lerman et al, 2021;Matthies et al, 2017;Miller et al, 2022;Narango et al, 2017;Nielsen et al, 2014;Rico-Silva et al, 2021;Taylor et al, 2016;Yates et al, 1997), we determined the commonly used ecological variables around the species occurrence points, as shown in Table 3. In addition, we can calculate variance inflation factors for environmental variables (VIF, Quinn, and Keough, 2002) to avoid high multicollinearity affecting analysis results (Guisan and Zimmermann, 2000).…”

Coyotes in New York City Carry Variable Genomic Dog Ancestry and Influence Their Interactions with Humans

“…Among the Canis species, coyotes have a history of being characterized as generalists and opportunistic predators with highly variable diets [ 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 ]. Natural prey species can be retained in remnant yet fragmented heterogeneous urban patches, such as parks, and their diet is likely to be supplemented with anthropogenic food subsidies [ 20 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ]. Coyotes are an ideal system in which to study range expansion and urban ecological dynamics since they have the combined influence of their generalist ecology and a demographic history of introgression.…”