Garden Size Research Articles

Vegetation density is the main driver of insect species richness and diversity in small private urban front gardens

Urbanisation changes natural ecosystems and vegetation to urban green spaces, and causes insect communities to experience novel challenges for survival. New evidence suggests that urban green spaces, no matter how small, can provide meaningful habitats for insects. Information on design and management of small gardens (<6 m2) in dense urban areas is still scarce. In particular, it is hardly known which garden designs provide most benefits to insects. We surveyed 65 small urban façade gardens (μ=1.7m2) in Amsterdam and The Hague in The Netherlands and measured various garden attributes that are expected to be relevant for general, flower-visiting and herbivorous insect species richness and diversity. Plant coverage and richness were the strongest predictors of insect biodiversity and species richness. We found no support for associations with native plants or garden size. Synthesis and applicationsTo strengthen insect biodiversity in the urban environment, we recommend future design of urban green spaces to focus on maximising coverage and richness of vegetation. Although there are advantages to using native species, we acknowledge that garden owners often prefer exotic species. Some of these can also affect insect diversity and abundances positively.

Exploring Floristic Diversity, Propagation Patterns, and Plant Functions in Domestic Gardens across Urban Planning Gradient in Lubumbashi, DR Congo

Urbanization degrades natural habitats and creates new urban ecosystems like domestic gardens. The plant composition of these gardens varies with socio-economic factors and urban planning levels. However, the diversity and impact of introduced species are often poorly assessed, causing potential ecological imbalances (disruptions in the natural functioning and stability of ecosystems), particularly in Lubumbashi (DR Congo). The objective was to analyze the spatial structure, plant diversity, propagation strategies, and ecological functions of domestic gardens. Three distinct neighborhoods were selected: a planned, unplanned, and residential neighborhood. Twenty avenues (with five plots per avenue) were chosen to represent the diversity within each neighborhood, and stratified random sampling of plots was conducted to analyze gardening practices. Gardens were classified into types, and their vegetation was evaluated based on species origin and ecological impact. The analysis of domestic gardens in Lubumbashi reveals significant variations across different neighborhood types. Residential neighborhoods exhibit larger average garden sizes (315.1 m2), higher species richness (22 species), and larger plot sizes (1032 m2) compared to unplanned and planned neighborhoods, where garden areas and species richness are notably lower. Rectangular gardens dominate in unplanned areas, while planned neighborhoods feature more intentional landscaping elements, such as flowerbeds and hedges. The use of gardens for food production is prominent in planned areas (40.7%), whereas residential neighborhoods prioritize ornamentation (51.4%). The study identified 232 taxa across 68 families, with a predominance of exotic species (80%) in all neighborhoods, particularly in unplanned areas (82.25%). The data revealed that Mangifera indica and Persea americana are abundant in all neighborhoods, illustrating their adaptability to different urban contexts. Herbaceous species are most common, followed by woody plants, with vines being sparse. Species dispersal is primarily driven by human activities (anthropochory), accounting for over 85% in all neighborhoods. These findings highlight the strong human influence on the composition and structure of domestic gardens in Lubumbashi, emphasizing the dominance of exotic species and the importance of anthropogenic factors in shaping urban green spaces. Urban policies should incorporate strategies to minimize the negative impacts of exotic species on native flora.

Examining the expansion of agroforestry practices and their management practices in the central highlands of Ethiopia

Agroforestry is an emerging livelihood strategy for meeting the fundamental requirements of millions of rural households, yet quantifying its expansion and management practices in Ethiopia remains limited. This study investigated the trends, extents and drivers of agroforestry expansion and related management practices in the central highlands of Ethiopia. A two-stage sampling method was employed to select 160 rural households that engaged in home garden and woodlot agroforestry practices. The data were collected via semi-structured questionnaires, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions and analyzed using descriptive statistics, content analysis, the Kruskal-Wallis test, and the Mann‒Whitney U test. The results demonstrated that there was a significant difference in the mean size (in hectares) of home gardens and woodlot agroforestry practices (p<0.05). There has been an increasing trend in the adoption and expansion of agroforestry practices, both in home gardens and woodlots. The rate of agroforestry expansion increased from 0.23 % before the 1980s to 3.95 % between 2011 and 2022. The expansion of agroforestry practices, particularly the increase in home garden size and woodlot establishment, was positively influenced by increased market demand, increased seedling availability, increased availability of labor, improved knowledge of agroforestry benefits, and increased proximity to homes and roads. Furthermore, the findings demonstrated that rural households implemented weeding, pruning, thinning, looping, pollarding, fertilizer application, watering, coppicing, fencing, and mulching to maintain and optimize the productivity of their agroforestry systems. Policymakers and stakeholders should consider developing targeted programs and incentives to further encourage the expansion of both home gardens and woodlot agroforestry practices.

Motivations for women’s participation in urban agriculture: a multivariate probit model analysis

ABSTRACT Urban agriculture (UA) empowers women by providing economic opportunities, control over food, social connections, new skills, and improved health. Despite its importance, Ethiopian women's participation in UA remains low. This study aimed to examine the factors that influencing women's motivation to participate in UA in Hossana town, Ethiopia. We analysed survey data from 272 women participating in UA using a multivariate probit model. We identified four primary motivational dimensions: food security, economic reasons, social connection, and general well-being. The results revealed that combination of food security and economic motivations were the main drivers for women to participate in UA. The multivariate probit model results showed that age, education level, marital status, family size, employment status, non-urban farm income, farm experience, garden size, access to credit and markets, and the use of improved inputs all significantly influence the likelihood of women’s motivations to participate in UA. These findings provide valuable insights into the motivating factors driving women’s participation in UA and suggest the potential bundling of motivations. They lay the groundwork for more effective policies and programmes to support women's participation in this crucial sector of UA.

Wildlife-friendly garden practices increase butterfly abundance and species richness in urban and arable landscapes

Insect declines are being reported worldwide and private, residential gardens could provide refugia for these species under increasing land use change. Interest in wildlife-friendly gardening has increased, but many management recommendations lack a scientific evidence-base. We used a large citizen science scheme, the Garden Butterfly Survey (GBS), with data from over 600 gardens across Great Britain (2016–2021) to determine how the surrounding landscape influences the abundance and species richness of butterflies in gardens and whether wildlife-friendly gardening practices, such as having long grass and providing nectar plants, benefit butterflies. First, we show that GBS provides reliable estimates of species abundances by comparing with results from standardised, long-term monitoring data. Garden size and surrounding land use had significant effects on butterfly abundance and richness in gardens, including positive relationships with garden size, woodland and arable farmland and negative relationships with urbanisation. Both the presence and area of long grass in gardens were positively related to higher butterfly richness and abundance, with the latter being driven by butterflies that use grasses as larval host plants. These effects differed depending on the surrounding landscape, such that long grass resulted in higher garden butterfly abundance in landscapes dominated by arable farming, and higher abundance and richness in highly urbanised areas. The presence of flowering ivy (Hedera spp.) in gardens resulted in higher abundance of Celastrina argiolus holly blue which uses ivy as a larval host, and of Vanessa atalanta red admiral and Polygonia c-album comma, which favour it as a nectar source. Our work provides evidence that undertaking simple wildlife-friendly garden practices can be beneficial for attracting butterflies, particularly in heavily modified areas. With over 728,000 ha of gardens in Great Britain, the cumulative effect of leaving areas of lawn uncut and providing nectar and larval host plants could be key for helping biodiversity.

The use of Enhanced Vegetation Index for assessing access to different types of green space in epidemiological studies

BackgroundExposure to green space can protect against poor health through a variety of mechanisms. However, there is heterogeneity in methodological approaches to exposure assessments which makes creating effective policy recommendations challenging.ObjectiveCritically evaluate the use of a satellite-derived exposure metric, the Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), for assessing access to different types of green space in epidemiological studies.MethodsWe used Landsat 5–8 (30 m resolution) to calculate average EVI for a 300 m radius surrounding 1.4 million households in Wales, UK for 2018. We calculated two additional measures using topographic vector data to represent access to green spaces within 300 m of household locations. The two topographic vector-based measures were total green space area stratified by type and average private garden size. We used linear regression models to test whether EVI could discriminate between publicly accessible and private green space and Pearson correlation to test associations between EVI and green space types.ResultsMean EVI for a 300 m radius surrounding households in Wales was 0.28 (IQR = 0.12). Total green space area and average private garden size were significantly positively associated with corresponding EVI measures (β = < 0.0001, 95% CI: 0.0000, 0.0000; β = 0.0001, 95% CI: 0.0001, 0.0001 respectively). In urban areas, as average garden size increases by 1 m2, EVI increases by 0.0002. Therefore, in urban areas, to see a 0.1 unit increase in EVI index score, garden size would need to increase by 500 m2. The very small β values represent no ‘measurable real-world’ associations. When stratified by type, we observed no strong associations between greenspace and EVI.ImpactIt is a widely implemented assumption in epidiological studies that an increase in EVI is equivalent to an increase in greenness and/or green space.We used linear regression models to test associations between EVI and potential sources of green reflectance at a neighbourhood level using satellite imagery from 2018.We compared EVI measures with a ‘gold standard’ vector-based dataset that defines publicly accessible and private green spaces.We found that EVI should be interpreted with care as a greater EVI score does not necessarily mean greater access to publicly available green spaces in the hyperlocal environment.

Is there any difference between the owners and the public in their visual impact assessments?--A case study of the front garden of multi-storey residential buildings.

As a special garden unique to China, the front garden of multi-storey residential buildings has certain public attributes but is managed by a single owner. In this study, the front gardens of multi-storey residential buildings in Jiangsu province, China, were set as research object. Meanwhile, the size of garden, plant type, plant vertical structure, color number, plant coverage, and fence material were chosen as the landscape features to be explored. Then the experiments were conducted to reveal the visual impact assessment rendered by the public with different demographic attributes and the results obtained were analyzed. As is indicated by the statistical analysis, significant differences exist between the owners and the public in their visual impact assessments of the front gardens; the six landscape features are the main factors that influence the public's visual impact assessment; and the public with different demographic attributes would render different visual impact assessments of front gardens. This study offers valuable help for the design of front gardens of multi-storey residential buildings.

How do urban parks, neighborhood open spaces, and private gardens relate to individuals’ subjective well-being: Results of a structural equation model

As urban areas become more densely populated worldwide, the allocation of limited urban green infrastructure to promote well-being among users is becoming increasingly challenging. This study aims to understand the relationships of three types of urban green infrastructure (urban parks, neighborhood green open spaces and private gardens) with subjective well-being (SWB). We construct a structural equation model to examine these relationships in an integrated fashion. We consider both direct and indirect effects of green spaces on SWB. Data were collected through an online questionnaire involving a sample of 322 individuals in the Netherlands. Results indicate that the direct relationship between neighborhood green satisfaction and SWB is positive and stronger than the relationship between satisfaction with urban parks and SWB. Private garden size has an indirect positive effect on SWB mediated by neighborhood green satisfaction. Interestingly, an individual with higher satisfaction with green tends to have higher SWB independently of the frequency of using the green space. Overall, our method and results bring new insights to optimize urban green space planning to enhance users’ SWB.

Flower Garden as a Short-Term Greening Effort for Embung Area in Srimulyo Village, Gondang District, Sragen Regency, Central Java

A flower garden was created to green the embung area considering the dry season in August. The master plan used as a reference is a master plan made by the previous KKN period. In the execution process, the making of the flower garden has yet to be realized. Therefore, in this period of KKN, a flower garden was made west of the village pond. The flower garden created has a size of 8 x 2 meters with a distance of 30 cm between plants. There are 89 plants in this flower garden, namely 50 red purslane plants, 30 sabrina plants, and nine panca air plants. Making the garden begins with clearing the land and cleaning up the existing weeds. Then, the land measurement is carried out according to the desired garden size. After that, the process of tillage so that the soil can be planted with flower plants that have been prepared. The process of tillage is a process that takes much time. More than three days of new soil can be planted with flower plants. The obstacle faced in making this garden is the dry soil conditions, resulting in soil management that must be done with a long process.

Promoting Beneficial Arthropods in Urban Agroecosystems: Focus on Flowers, Maybe Not Native Plants.

(1) Urbanization threatens biodiversity, yet urban native plants support native biodiversity, contributing to conservation and ecosystem services. Within urban agroecosystems, where non-native plants are abundant, native plants may boost the abundance and richness of beneficial arthropods. Nevertheless, current information focuses on pollinators, with little attention being paid to other beneficials, like natural enemies. (2) We examined how the species richness of native plants, garden management, and landscape composition influence the abundance and species richness of all, native, and non-native bees, ladybeetles, ants, and ground-foraging spiders in urban agroecosystems (i.e., urban community gardens) in California. (3) We found that native plants (~10% of species, but only ~2.5% of plant cover) had little influence on arthropods, with negative effects only on non-native spider richness, likely due to the low plant cover provided by native plants. Garden size boosted native and non-native bee abundance and richness and non-native spider richness; floral abundance boosted non-native spider abundance and native and non-native spider richness; and mulch cover and tree and shrub abundance boosted non-native spider richness. Natural habitat cover promoted non-native bee and native ant abundance, but fewer native ladybeetle species were observed. (4) While native plant richness may not strongly influence the abundance and richness of beneficial arthropods, other garden management features could be manipulated to promote the conservation of native organisms or ecosystem services provided by native and non-native organisms within urban agroecosystems.

Floral richness and seasonality influences bee and non-bee flower interactions in urban community gardens

Pollinating insects are essential for food production. Both bee and non-bee pollinators are undergoing dramatic declines due to land use intensification and its consequences on native ecosystems. While interactions between crops and bee pollinators are well studied, our understanding of the pollination service provided by non-bee flower visitors including flies, ants, beetles and others is still limited. Moreover, the effects of landscape urbanization and changes in floral and nesting resource availability on the network structure of pollinators with both cultivated and wild plants have been poorly studied. We assessed which common bee and non-bee flower visitor groups dominate the interactions with both wild (e.g. Trifolium pratense, Taraxacum officinales) and cultivated plants (e.g. Fragaria ananassa, Cucurbita pepo) in urban community gardens in Berlin and Munich and explored how these interactions between flower visitor groups and plants change over the growing season. We further investigated the effect of changes in urbanization surrounding community gardens, and the availability of floral and nesting resources within gardens on the complexity (i.e. nestedness, linkage density, connectance) of interaction networks. We observed 20 focal plant species and 13 common bee and non-bee flower visitor groups in 30 urban community gardens. We found that dominant plant visitors changed over the growing season, with non-bee flower visitors including ants and flies as dominant early season visitors, and bee pollinators as important visitors later in the season. Nestedness of the flower visitor network increased with increases in floral richness in community gardens, while neither floral abundance nor the impervious surface surrounding the community gardens, garden size or the availability of nesting resources in gardens strongly influenced the flower visitor networks. Our findings suggest that high floral richness in community gardens may ensure the complexity and, thus, the stability of flower visitor networks. Findings further suggest that the role of non-bee flower visitors should be considered for pollination service provision especially in the shoulder seasons. Finally, our results emphasize that urban gardeners play a key role in mediating flower visitor interactions through their gardening practices.

GROUND TRUTHING: STUDYING PERI-URBANIZATION AND LAND-BASED LIVELIHOODS IN MANKWENG AND ITS ENVIRONS (LIMPOPO, SOUTH AFRICA)

Abstract. Peri-urbanization is often referred to as a transition zone following either an urban-rural gradient or an inner and outer peri-urban zone. Contrary to these notions and linked to its history in a former homeland, peri-urbanization in Mankweng appears as a complex and erratic process in reaction to shifting livelihoods, in-migration, and climate change. The process of ground truth for the study was designed by accommodating a combination of remote sensing images of WorldView-3 for the densely, vastly changing populated area (200 km2) and of Sentinel-2 for the overall study area of 400 km2. For the purpose of intensive data gathering, 16 plus three additional sites were selected in the area covered with the very high-resolution imagery as well as transect drives in the rural part. The study sites were selected and well distributed based on specific parameters such as building density, home garden size, road type with the goal of better interpreting what can be distinguished on the imagery and what influences land-based livelihoods. Additional information was gathered from informants during the ground truth through open questions and informal discussions. A solid knowledge of the land uses and land cover, including housing structures, agricultural practices, and challenges of land-based subsistence, was attained. The results revealed influential change drivers, settlement structure types, distinct development patterns, changes in traditional land-based livelihood specifically in terms of agriculture in the region and indicators for a functional zoning of the area. The ground truth provides a thorough basis for the object-based image analysis of the 200 km2 peri-urban area being next.

Do carbon stocks and floristic diversity of tropical homegardens vary along an elevational gradient and based on holding size in central Kerala, India?

Homegarden (HG) agroforestry combines biological carbon (C) sequestration with biodiversity conservation outcomes. Although C stocks and species richness of HGs vary along elevational gradients and as a function of holding sizes, there is no consensus on the nature and magnitude of such variations. Field studies were conducted in the Western Ghats region of central Kerala, India (180 homesteads in 20 selected panchayats), to evaluate the effects of elevation (near sea level to 1938m) and garden size (162-10,117 m2) on aboveground C stocks and floristic diversity. The C stocks (per unit area) of HGs (arborescent species) were highly variable (0.63-93.65Mgha-1), as garden management was highly individualistic and it exhibited a weak negative relationship with elevation. Likewise, there was a weak negative relationship between C stocks and garden size. Tree stocking levels (stems/garden) and species richness (species/garden) positively impacted total C stocks per garden. Floristic diversity was high in the study area (753 species) and included many rare and endangered species (43 IUCN Red-Listed species) making homegardens circa situm reservoirs of biodiversity. Elevation and holding size exerted a weak negative linear relationship on Simpson's floristic diversity index, whichranged from 0.26 to 0.93 for thearboreal species. Homegardens, regardless of elevation or size, contribute to C sequestration and agrobiodiversity conservation and help achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Climate Action (SDG-13) and conserving agrobiodiversity (SDG-15, Life on Land).

Plant species richness and sunlight exposure increase pollinator attraction to pollinator gardens

AbstractEvidence documenting the decline of insect populations is accumulating. Efforts have increased to mitigate pollinator losses by establishing gardens to support pollinator diversity. However, knowledge of the specific garden characteristics, landscape features, and environmental factors that affect pollinator diversity and abundance is limited, particularly in biodiverse regions in North America. In order to better understand how garden characteristics affect pollinator attraction, we compared pollinator composition across 16 pollinator gardens in the Appalachian ecoregion in North America. We evaluated the effects of garden characteristics (e.g., plant richness, flower abundance, garden size, and proportion of native species), landscape features (land‐use type and distance to forest), and environmental factors (sunlight exposure) on pollinator richness, overall visitation rate, and visitation rate by defined pollinator groups (i.e., solitary native bees, bumblebees, honeybees, lepidopterans, and other insects). Solitary bees (i.e., native bees besides Bombus) were the most frequent visitors (61%). We found differences in pollinator species composition between urban and rural gardens. Moreover, plant richness had a positive effect on pollinator richness and an increase in flower abundance increased the pollinator visitation rate. Flower abundance, plant richness, and high sunlight exposure increased visitation rate of solitary bees. Visitation rate of solitary bees however decreased with increasing proportion of native plants. Overall, our results indicate that garden characteristics, landscape features, and environmental factors all are important mediators of pollinator diversity and abundance. Solitary bees were most affected by garden (i.e., plant richness, number of flowers, and proportion of native plants) and environmental factors (i.e., sunlight exposure). However, we also identified differential effects of garden and environmental factors across pollinator groups. We suggest that an integrated management approach that considers multiple garden and environmental characteristics could help improve the effectiveness of pollinator garden as a conservation tool and help preserve this key ecosystem service.

Can botanic gardens serve as refuges for taxonomic and functional diversity of Odonata? The case of the botanic garden of Castilla-La Mancha (Spain).

In a scenario with declining biodiversity and habitat loss, botanic gardens could serve as refuges for invertebrates, but the opportunities they offer for animal conservation are still poorly understood. Odonata is a good model group for conservation studies, because it includes threatened species and responses to habitat disturbance are well documented. In this study, we assessed the role of the botanic garden of Castilla-La Mancha in Spain as a refuge for members of Odonata by analysing their taxonomic and functional diversity. We explored if the small size of the botanic garden might constrain the taxonomic diversity of Odonata and if low habitat diversity might limit their functional diversity. We sampled adult Odonata from five water bodies along a gradient of human impact and characterized the Odonata communities based on 12 functional traits in Odonata. We used a species–area relationship to control for differences in the size of water bodies. Compared with natural lakes, the Odonata communities contained less species and their functional diversity was lower in the botanic garden ponds, where generalist species were basically hosted. Despite these limitations, the botanic garden ponds hosted the number of species expected for natural water bodies with the moderate surface area and functional diversity, thereby demonstrating that they are a valuable habitat for Odonata in an urban environment. Appropriate management involving the removal of exotic fish and habitat diversification, including creating lotic environments, would increase the taxonomic and functional diversity of Odonata in this urban system.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10201-022-00704-3.

Associations between household garden size and childhood obesity in Wales, UK.

ObjectivesPhysical inactivity directly contributes to the global issue of obesity. Small-scale garden-based interventions have positively impacted on children’s physical activity levels. However, no studies have objectively measured household gardens and assessed associations with childhood obesity on a population scale. We linked garden measures with administrative data for a national population. ApproachOur cross-sectional study examined the relationship between garden size and BMI in 154,444 children aged 5 years living in Wales between 2013-2019. We linked garden size at the home location with individual-level BMI measurements and socio-demographic data in the SAIL databank; a secure research environment. BMI measures were derived from the Child Measurement Programme and were standardised using the LMS method. We calculated descriptive statistics for our cohort and used Generalised Additive Models to investigate associations between garden size and BMI. Our results include adjustment for confounding variables such as deprivation. We stratified our analysis by gender and rurality. ResultsOur cohort consisted of 52% male and 49% females. 18% lived in the most affluent quintile and 28% lived in the most deprived quintile. 74% of the cohort lived in urban areas whilst 26% lived in rural areas. Average garden size was 176m2 and the mean number of individuals living in the home was 4. We found a non-linear statistically significant negative association between garden size and BMI (edf = 2.37, p &lt; 0.01). When we stratified our analysis by gender, for males we found a linear statistically significant negative association between garden size and BMI (edf = 1, p &lt; 0.01). For females we found a non-linear statistically significant association between garden size and BMI (edf = 2.67, p &lt; 0.05). ConclusionOur study is the first to link routinely measured objective household variables with BMI data for a national cohort. Our results suggest that garden-based interventions could be focussed on to increase physical activity in children. Further research is required to investigate the pathways between garden, physical activity and reducing obesity.

Multi-sectoral data linkages to explore associations between the built environment and BMI.

ObjectivesIn Wales almost a quarter of adults and 1 in 8 reception age children are obese. Linked data is a key tool to understanding the role of the built environment on obesity rates and is an important part of developing strategies to combat the obesity epidemic in Wales.&#x0D; ApproachWe set out to develop an analytical platform for generating evidence on key aspects of the built environment which impact child and adult obesity including; walkability, fast food availability, green space size and qualities, active transport routes and school environments. Utilising the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank We linked multi-sectoral data including routine health data, cohort data, administrative data and linked Geographic Information Systems generated metrics at household and school level. The platform will inform policy makers with and facilitate a better understanding of associations between a range of social, health and built environment factors.&#x0D; ResultsWe have created a range of built environment variables including temporally and age varying walkability indices, viewable greenspace, garden and house size, access to services and parks for 1.5 million households. In the first instance, as part of the BEACHES project, this data has been linked to several health datasets including the Child Measurement Programme (CMP, n=188,800) where initial results have shown that associations between garden size and Body Mass Index in children displays a non-linear negative correlation. We have also created follow-up measures for the CMP using routinely collected general practice data which further enables linking 28,389 height and weight measurements. However, potential bias in these follow-up measures is poorly understood with further work being undertaken to assess usability.&#x0D; ConclusionThe integrated multi-sectoral data platform approach to linking environmental, administrative, health and cohort data aims to develop insights on a range of public health issues. We are working with a range of stakeholders to develop evidence-based policy initiatives to reduce obesity in Wales.

Exploring Social and Locality Variations of Dog Bites in Scotland Using Administrative Data Sources.

ObjectivesPrevious research has shown that hospital admissions for dog-bites are highest in the most deprived areas across England and Wales. In Scotland, thus far there has been no rigorous empirical investigation into social inequalities in dog-related injuries. This study aims to address this gap through analysis of linked administrative data.&#x0D; ApproachThe study uses administrative health data from NHS24 calls, A&amp;E and SMR01 records involving dog-related injuries linked to Scotland Census micro-data. Area-based measures of social circumstance are considered through the SIMD, along with an exploration of novel, area-level characteristics including measures of local greenspace, average garden size and dog populations. Individual/household level measures of social circumstance taken from the Scottish Census are used to compare the characteristics of individuals with health records involving dog-related injuries to a random sample of individuals not appearing in the health data sets.&#x0D; ResultsWhen looking at individual level records and during modelling at aggregate area level, SIMD was an important factor in all models. Whilst some variation was observed across the different types of health data, the number of records, incident risk ratios and odds ratios were all consistently at least 2-3 higher when comparing the most to least deprived areas. Accounting for dog populations and introducing interaction terms for SIMD decile by dog population increased the main effect of SIMD.&#x0D; When comparing individual/household level measures of social circumstance taken from the Scottish Census, occupation-based measures such as NS-SEC appeared to be relatively important predictors of risk, alongside ethnicity, household composition and age, with children disproportionately represented.&#x0D; ConclusionIncident rates of dog-related injuries were higher in more deprived areas and circumstances where individuals may be seen as more socially disadvantaged at the individual or household level. Social/legal policies related to dog-bites typically don’t consider social disadvantage in any meaningful way. These results show the importance of doing so.

Basic ecology of ant gardens in a dry-premontane transitional forest

Introduction: Ant gardens are ant nests located at different heights on trees on which vascular epiphytic plants that have been transported and sown by ants have germinated. Although this mutualistic relationship has been studied in humid tropical ecosystems, information on other tropical and Colombian ecosystems is scarce. Objective: To characterize the spatial distribution, formation process, diversity, demography, and phenology of Ant gardens in a secondary dry premontane transitional forest in Colombia. Methods: We estimated the spatial distribution and formation process of ant gardens. Phenological and demographic monitoring of epiphytes plants of ant gardens was performed. The monitoring of the ant gardens was done in transects, every 15 days. Results: The ant gardens showed an aggregated distribution pattern relative to water bodies. The garden-forming ant species was identified as Azteca ulei. Ten species of epiphytes plants and 13 species of phorophytes trees related to ant gardens were identified. The behavior of A. ulei favored the formation and maintenance of the ant gardens. A positive relationship was found between epiphyte richness and ant garden size. Some epiphytes presented a bimodal phenological pattern. The demographic pattern of epiphytes suggests that in the dry season, the number of established seedlings is reduced, which reduces the number of adults that remain in ant gardens. Conclusions: Ant gardens are the microhabitat that allows the germination, establishment, and reproduction of diverse epiphytes in the studied dry-premontane transitional forest.

Could Purposefully Engineered Native Grassland Gardens Enhance Urban Insect Biodiversity?

Progress is required in response to how cities can support greater biodiversity. This calls for more research on how landscape designers can actively shape urban ecologies to deliver context-specific empirical bases for green space intervention decisions. Design experiments offer opportunities for implemented projects within real-world settings to serve as learning sites. This paper explores preliminary ecological outcomes from a multidisciplinary team on whether purposefully engineered native grassland gardens provide more habitat functions for insects than mainstream gardens in the City of Tshwane, South Africa. Six different sites were sampled: two recently installed native grassland garden interventions (young native), two contemporary non-native control gardens (young non-native) on the same premises and of the same ages as the interventions, one remnant of a more pristine native grassland reference area (old native), and one long-established, non-native reference garden (old non-native). Plant and insect diversity were sampled over one year. The short-term findings suggest that higher plant beta diversity (species turnover indicating heterogeneity in a site) supports greater insect richness and evenness in richness. Garden size, age, and connectivity were not clear factors mediating urban habitat enhancement. Based on the preliminary results, the researchers recommend high native grassland species composition and diversity, avoiding individual species dominance, but increasing beta diversity and functional types when selecting garden plants for urban insect biodiversity conservation in grassland biomes.