Types Of Urban Green Spaces Research Articles

Qualitative Exploration of Perception and Use of Cultural Ecosystem Services from Tree-Based Urban Green Space in the City of Zagreb (Croatia)

Background and Objectives: Cultural ecosystem services of urban green spaces are increasingly important and often recognized as such by people living in urban areas. Qualitative studies on perception of cultural ecosystem services from urban green spaces are still rare. Previous studies addressed only certain types of urban green space and often only some services. There is a lack of understanding how people perceive cultural ecosystem services from different types of tree-based urban green spaces. Hence, the purpose of the study was to explore whether and how people perceive and use cultural ecosystem services of different types of tree-based urban green spaces. Materials and Methods: Focus groups were conducted with citizens in each city district. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and transcripts analyzed in MAXQDA software. We used bottom up code-category-theme approach to analyze the data without predefined set of codes or categories. Results: Place attachment, aesthetic and recreational services were more recognized than educational and cultural identity services. For place attachment, most important single attributes were positive memories, and good maintenance, while most important categories were facilities, existence of emotional ties, possibility of experiences, recreational use and access. Presence of specific tree species and presence of trees in general were most important attributes for aesthetic services, while possibility of experiences and trees were the most important categories. Conclusions: People perceived various cultural ecosystem services from tree-based urban green space, even though some services more than others. Recreation may be the underlying goal of our participants when interacting with tree-based urban nature. Forests, parks were recognized as those providing multiple cultural ecosystem services. However, other types of green spaces were also recognized as bearers of these services, albeit with less services and attributes attached. It supports the importance of careful planning of urban green spaces in terms of providing a variety of green space types. The study provides basis for later quantification of cultural ecosystem services (CES) from tree-based urban green space.

Urban Green Space Distribution Related to Land Values in Fast-Growing Megacities, Mumbai and Jakarta–Unexploited Opportunities to Increase Access to Greenery for the Poor

Many studies on disparities in the distribution of urban green space (UGS) focus on the quantity and accessibility of designated open spaces. However, when all types of UGS, including unmanaged green areas, are accounted for, claims of green space distributive injustice become more complicated. We conducted a preliminary investigation questioning the common Global North assumption that the poor have less access to the benefits of green space, using the cities of Mumbai and Jakarta as case studies as, in their respective countries, wealth inequality has grown at a higher rate than in other Asian countries. We employed four sets of geospatial data to analyze green space distribution patterns and probe the relationship with UGS inequity in different land value districts. We found that the lower land value districts had more vegetation coverage with a higher vegetation density, mainly due to a large quantity of unmanaged greenery. The relationship between the status of urban development and the land values in a district is not necessarily reflective of the UGS distribution once unmanaged vegetation is considered. We conclude by discussing ways to optimize the use of unmanaged UGS as a socioecological asset for poorer districts, and we point to the practical consequences of incorporating the study’s findings into policy and planning towards the creation of ecologically inclusive cities.

Characterising the soil fungal microbiome in metropolitan green spaces across a vegetation biodiversity gradient

Abstract Plant-soil feedbacks not only shape plant communities but also the abiotic and biotic nature of soils. These feedbacks are well-studied in natural and agricultural landscapes, but poorly studied in cities. Here, we investigated soil fungal communities, vegetation and soil abiotic properties in five urban green space types within urban Adelaide, South Australia. We surveyed eight, spatially-independent replicates of Sport Fields, Community Gardens, Parklands, Young Revegetation, and Old Revegetation sites. Vegetation strongly associated with soil fungal abundance and diversity. Revegetated urban green spaces had appreciably higher fungal diversity than other spaces, as well as greater richness in saprotrophic and pathotrophic fungi. We suggest that restoration of urban green space fungal microbiomes appears possible via replanting the native vegetation community. Such revegetation interventions will likely have positive outcomes for not only biodiversity conservation but also human health, via re-creating a biodiverse environmental microbiome.

Assessing the Ecosystem Services of Various Types of Urban Green Spaces Based on i-Tree Eco

Urban green spaces play a crucial role in maintaining urban ecosystem sustainability by providing numerous ecosystem services. How to quantify and evaluate the ecological benefits and services of urban green spaces remains a hot topic currently, while the evaluation is barely applied or implemented in urban design and planning. In this study, super-high-resolution aerial images were used to acquire the spatial distribution of urban green spaces; a modified pre-stratified random sampling method was applied to obtain the vegetation information of the four types of urban green spaces in Luohe, a common plain city in China; and i-Tree Eco model was further used to assess the vegetation structure and various ecosystem services including air quality improvement, rainfall interception, carbon storage, and sequestration provided by four types of urban green spaces. The modeling results reveal that there were about 1,006,251 trees in this area. In 2013, all the trees in these green spaces could store about 54,329 t of carbon, sequester about 4973 t of gross carbon, remove 92 t of air pollutants, and avoid 122,637 m3 of runoff. The study illustrates an innovative method to reveal different types of urban green spaces with distinct ecosystem service productivity capacity to better understand their various roles in regulating the urban environment. The results could be used to assist urban planners and policymakers to optimize urban green space structure and composition to maximize ecosystem services provision.

Perceptions of ecosystem services, disservices and willingness-to-pay for urban green space conservation

While planning and management of urban green space (UGS) remain primarily driven by policymakers and expert knowledge, increasing attention has been paid to the general public's perception of and demand for UGS. This study was conducted to provide price-related outcomes to support UGS-related decision making and achieve an improved understanding of the causal relationships underpinning the residents' willingness-to-pay (WTP) for UGS conservation. An extensive survey with 3000 urban residents from three provincial capital cities in central China (i.e., Wuhan, Changsha and Nanchang) was conducted. We applied structural equation modelling to examine a range of hypothetical causal relationships among residents' perceptions about ecosystem services/disservices provided by UGS, frequency of UGS visits, socioeconomic status (SES) and WTP for the conservation of five different types of UGS. We found that residents had an average WTP of 202.4 CNY or 30.6 USD per year cross UGS types, with the attached green space having the greatest WTP (223.0 CNY or 33.7 USD per year), followed by park (215.4 CNY or 32.6 USD year), square (201.7 CNY or 30.5 USD year), suburban ecological (190.1 CNY or 28.7 USD year) and protective (182.0 CNY or 27.5 USD year) green spaces. Perceptions of UGS's ecosystem services had a positive causal impact on WTP, while perceptions of ecosystem disservices would have a negative impact. The frequency of UGS visits was found to amplify WTP at a limited level. It could further heighten and diminish the perceptions of ecosystem services and disservices. Participants with higher SES typically had greater perceptions of UGS's ecosystem services and WTP. Finally, we found that the structure of the causal relationships on WTP varied between cities, highlighting the importance of considering the fine-level impacts of biophysical environment jointly. Our results could help urban planners to understand better the ways urban green space was perceived and anticipate the likely effects of changing spatial patterns of UGS on the benefits and nuisances experienced by the general public.

Dead wood resources vary across different types of urban green spaces and depend on property prices

Dead wood provides important ecosystem services and has a positive effect on biodiversity. However, urban environments have limited resources of coarse woody debris (CWD). The presence of CWD depends on both progressive tree mortality and the frequency and intensity of CWD removal for safety or aesthetic reasons, which can lead to variations in CWD occurrence. The aim of this study was to assess the variation in the quantity and quality of CWD in urban green spaces and to assess the relationship between CWD resources and management policy, ownership, economic parameters and factors accelerating tree mortality. Fallen logs, dead standing trees and dead tree branches (DTB) were surveyed on 488 sample plots selected at random in the city of Kraków (Poland). Distance to the river, coverage of impervious surfaces, environmental pollution, property prices and types of green space were used to explain the variation in CWD resources. CWD occurred on 46% of the sample plots. DTB were the most frequent form of CWD (44% of plots), while dead standing trees were rare (4%) and fallen logs absent. The prevalence of CWD was the highest in forest remnants, followed by private gardens, urban parks, fallow land and small green patches. DTB were the most abundant in the forest remnants. In both forest remnants and private gardens, the probability of CWD occurrence decreased with increasing property prices. Management policy and economy rather than factors accelerating tree mortality are suggested as shaping CWD resources in urban green spaces. The article highlights the importance of DTB as the most widespread form of CWD and forest remnants as the type of green space having the most abundant resources of CWD. Sustainable management of CWD resources within urban green spaces and environmental education are needed to conserve biodiversity and maintain ecosystem services.

Impact of urban green spaces, native tree species and seasons on soil pH in Kaunas, Lithuania

Tree growth is sensitive to soil pH in urban areas and is often higher than in rural forest. However, there are knowledge gaps on how soil pH and alkalization are affected by urban environments and seasonal climate as well as the cascading effects on tree species. In order to fulfill these gaps, we analyzed the soil pHCaCl of four common native deciduous tree species: Acer platanoides, Tilia cordata, Quercus robur and Betula pendula in five different types of urban green spaces in Kaunas city municipality (Lithuania). The results show that soil pH in urban environments with Betula pendula sites were most alkaline (pH 7.04), whereas the soil pH of urban environments with Acer platanoides (pH 6.7) and Tilia cordata (pH 6.8) were most acidic. The soil pH of street tree greeneries was alkaline, while soils of peri-urban forests and large urban parks were acidic. Differently to natural conditions in peri urban forests the soil pH level drop down by 0.5 is observed during spring-autumn period in broad street greeneries with largest urban pressure. The variation in soil pH of the different types of green space and tree species shows that city planner should consider the unique conditions of all green space to maximize their potential for human well-being.

Does sleep grow on trees? A longitudinal study to investigate potential prevention of insufficient sleep with different types of urban green space.

IntroductionTo investigate association between urban green space and prevalent and incident cases of insufficient sleep (<6 h sleep per day).MethodsThis longitudinal study examined the odds of prevalent and incident insufficient sleep in relation to indicators of total green space, tree canopy, open grass and other low-lying vegetation in the Sax Institute's 45 and Up Study (baseline 2006–2009; follow-up 2012–2015). Association between green space within 1.6 km road distances and insufficient sleep among 38,982 participants living in Sydney, Wollongong or Newcastle were analysed using multilevel logistic regressions adjusted for confounding.ResultsParticipants with more total green space had lower odds of prevalent insufficient sleep (e.g. ≥30% compared with 0-4% total green space odds ratio (OR) = 0.68, 95% credible interval (95%CI) = 0.53, 0.85). The odds of prevalent insufficient sleep were lower among participants with more tree canopy (e.g. ≥30% compared with 0-9% tree canopy OR = 0.78, 95%CI 0.69, 0.88). The odds of incident insufficient sleep were also lower with more tree canopy (e.g. ≥30% compared with 0-9% tree canopy OR = 0.87, 95%CI = 0.75, 0.99). There were no statistically significant associations between prevalent or incident insufficient sleep with open grass or other low-lying vegetation, nor incident sufficient sleep with total green space.ConclusionsPrioritising restoration and protection of urban tree canopy may help to promote population-wide prevention of insufficient sleep in middle-to-older aged adults.

Plant Community Composition and Biodiversity Patterns in Urban Parks of Portland, Oregon

Urban parks are biodiversity hotspots and are integral components of green infrastructure in urban areas. A variety of land use practices and environmental factors affect urban park biodiversity and vegetation structure, composition, and ecological function, but few studies have compared plant taxonomic composition, structural complexity, and species traits across different types of urban green spaces. The purpose of this study was to better understand the relationships between plant community composition, structural patterns, and environmental and species traits by using a standardized data collection method across different types of urban parks in Portland, Oregon. We examined the potential ways that different types of urban parks preserve native species and/or harbor non-native and invasive species. We used a stratified random sampling design to select 15 parks of different types based on use: 1) recreational-active use parks, 2) natural-passive use parks, and 3) multi-use parks. We found a total of 178 plant species belonging to 141 genera and 65 families. Multivariate analyses, including ordination with non-metric multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis were used to explore vegetation composition data and associations of different species assemblages with environmental variables. One-way analysis of variance was used to test hypotheses about variables associated with diversity. Statistically-significant differences in species richness and biodiversity indices were found between different park types. More native species were found in natural-passive use parks than other park types, more non-native species are found in multi-use parks than the other park types, and more invasive species were found in natural passive-use parks than in recreational-active use parks. Attributes such as natural-passive use park type, wetland habitat, steep slopes, native species origin, non-native species origin, and vine and tree plant forms were those most strongly correlated with the non-metric multidimensional scaling ordination, indicating that these attributes exert the strongest influence on species abundance and distribution with Portland’s urban parks. The findings of this study can assist park managers in their aims to promote native species cover, reduce invasive species presence, or achieve additional management goals for urban parks.

"I Would Never Come Here Because I've Got My Own Garden": Older Adults' Perceptions of Small Urban Green Spaces.

Green spaces are known to improve health and wellbeing via several mechanisms, such as by reducing stress and facilitating physical activity. However, little is known about the impact of the smaller green spaces typically found in urban environments on wellbeing, especially for older adults. This study investigated experiences in adults (5 males and 10 females) aged 60 years and over of small urban green spaces in a large UK city. Fifteen older adults were interviewed using semi-structured walk-along interviews and photo elicitation methods in Old Moat, Greater Manchester. Twelve of the participants lived in Old Moat at the time of the study, and the remaining three participants previously lived in Old Moat and were frequent visitors. Transcribed interviews were analyzed using Thematic Analysis. Smaller urban green spaces were perceived differently to large green spaces, and participants were more likely to use larger green spaces such as parks. The smaller green spaces were perceived as belonging to other people, which discouraged the older adults from using them. The older adults also emphasized the importance of taking care of small urban green spaces and preventing them from becoming overgrown. Urban planners should consider these factors, since they indicate that the size and type of urban green spaces may influence whether they improve health and wellbeing. Further research should investigate in more detail which types of urban green space are most conducive to facilitating physical activity and improving wellbeing.

Woody species and trait diversity-functional relations of green spaces in Kumasi, Ghana

Urban biodiversity is essential to creating resilient and sustainable cities. Nevertheless, there is paucity of data on the characterization of microhabitat effects on species/trait diversity and diversity-functional relationships in urban landscapes especially in developing countries. The objectives of this study were to; 1) analyze tree species diversity and composition of urban green space (UGS) types and urban zones, (2) describe the life history diversity of UGS types and urban zones and 3) examine the links between species and life history trait diversity and species productivity (carbon storage) in Kumasi, Ghana. Stratified random sampling was adopted in surveying 470 sampling plots and six streets of lengths ranging from 50 m to 1 km. About 176 tree species in 46 families were recorded within Kumasi. About 96 species were in an adjacent natural forest located at the outskirts of the city. Home gardens, institutional compounds, and public parks had the highest species richness of 76, 75 and 71, respectively while urban rangelands and farmlands were the least species rich with 6 and 23, respectively. Species richness (S) in the peri-urban (LDUZ, S = 142) and core urban (HDUZ, S = 108) were significantly different (Χ2 = 15.7, p < 0.0001, n = 1). Native species richness was lowest in the core urban area and highest in the natural forest. Pioneers and anthropochory dispersed species were the most abundant, suggesting that this urban landscape is shaped by both environment and social filters. Tree species diversity and distribution depend on the type of UGS and portrays a perturbed landscape in the early seres of succession with the overall ecosystem function sustained by both species and life history trait diversities. The implications of these findings for improving urban biodiversity conservation and overall urban sustainability are discussed.

Patterns in urban butterflies and spontaneous plants across a University campus in Japan

University campuses often contain contiguous areas of urban green space (UGS) which are otherwise scarce in large cities and, thus, may provide critical habitat for numerous species. In this study, we evaluate butterfly and plant diversity at Chiba University in Japan from five UGS types, including intensive green roofs, meadows, roadsides, open spaces, and community gardens. Surveying non-destructively every two weeks from June to November 2010, we identified 707 individual butterflies to 25 species from five families, including red-listed species (e.g. Parantica sita Kollar, 1844). However, one species, Pseudozizeeria maha Kollar, 1848, represented over 50% of all individuals surveyed. Butterflies in the family Papilionidae showed strong preference for roadside habitat, indicating the importance of ‘butterfly flyways’ and contiguous habitat corridors on University campuses. Butterfly richness and abundance was significantly different between UGS types and highest in the community garden and roadsides. We recorded 70 garden plant species and 117 spontaneous plant species (which grew opportunistically, without design input), of which 58% were native. Total plant richness was positively correlated with butterfly species richness, and non-native spontaneous plant species richness was positively correlated with butterfly richness, abundance, diversity, and evenness. Additionally, 76% of the spontaneous species identified were determined to be used by butterflies as larval hosts or for adult feeding. Identification of spontaneous plant species and use of selective weeding should be included in landscape management planning on campuses to promote butterflies, which can act as ambassadors for biodiversity conservation and help connect people to nature.

The Impact of Resident Participation on Urban Woodland Quality—A Case Study of Sletten, Denmark

Despite the potential of urban woodlands for recreational use and participatory management, citizens’ perception of urban woodland quality, as well as the impact of citizens’ co-management on urban woodland quality, have not been thoroughly studied to date. The present study investigated how residents in Holstebro, Denmark define urban woodland quality in their neighborhood named Sletten and how they perceive the quality impact of their participation in the management and maintenance of a transition from private gardens to public urban woodland—the so-called co-management zone. Field survey of participation for all housing units with a co-management zone (n = 201) informed strategic selection of residents for individual interviews (n = 16). It was found that social, experiential, functional, and ecological dimensions are all part of residents’ perception of urban woodland quality, whereby maintenance, accessibility, and nature are dominating aspects of these dimensions. While these aspects are already integrated in quality assessment schemes for other types of urban green space, our study revealed the importance of structural and species diversity between and within woodland stands as central for the perceived woodland quality—a quality aspect that distinguishes woodland from other types of urban green space. Participation in the management and maintenance positively influenced the perceived woodland quality. Residents found that their participation in the co-management zone created functional and ecological, physical qualities in the woodland. Moreover, the active participation provided the residents with a range of social and experiential benefits, many of which they themselves argue that they would have missed out on if they were only allowed to use the woodland “passively”. These findings suggest a large—but also largely untapped—potential of participatory urban woodland management to contribute physical qualities to urban woodlands and benefits to its users.

A Study on Daegu City Citizen’s Consciousness about Urban Green Space for Heat Wave Mitigation

Daegu City has the most number of heat waves every year in the last 10 years among 7 metropolitan cities in Korea. As the slang, such as ‘Daefrica(Daegu + Africa)’ shown, Daegu City is recognized as a high temperature region in the summer. The purpose of this study is to understand the perception of urban green space as a mediator for heat wave mitigation for Daegu citizens. First, about 93.3% of the respondents perceived what the heat was. The most frequent cause of the increase in the number of heat waves was the increase in energy use (34.9%), ‘indiscriminate development’ (24.9%), ‘automobile and traffic increase’ (17.9%), ‘greenery reduction’ (12.6% ) were the most common cause. Second, 87.1% of respondents had positive perception about the mitigation effect on the effect of urban green space as a medium to mitigate the heat. In addition, 26.7% of respondents answered that they are very effective in mitigating the effect of the heat of urban greenery, and 95.1% of them responded more than ‘normal’. Third, as a result of examining the priorities of short and long-term heat-related policies, the short term was the highest (37.5%) in responding to ‘electricity tariff realization’ because of the high dependence on air conditioners. In contrast to the short-term perspective, the long-term policy for mitigating the heat wave was overwhelmingly supported by ‘expansion of urban green areas’ (50.7%). This is a result of confirming Daegu citizens’ consciousness which is highly evaluating the effect of urban green space as a medium for mitigating the heat. Fourth, the importance and performance of ‘urban green space type’ for mitigation of the heat wave were examined. The type of urban green space belonging to the phenomena maintenance area (quadrant Ⅰ), which both had high importance and performance, was classified as ‘neighborhood park’. In addition, it was surveyed as ‘Ssamji(mini) Park’ as the type of urban greenery in the concentrated improvement area (quadrant Ⅱ) where the importance is high but the performance is low. We believe that the value of urban green areas for mitigating the heat waves has been fully recognized through the recognition of Daegu citizens. We hope that the results of this study will be used as basic data for future Daegu city heat and urban greening policy.

THE EFFECT OF GREEN SPACE ON THE LAND SURFACE TEMPERATURE IN HUE CITY

This paper presents the analysis of the effect of urban green space types on land surface temperature in Hue city. Data are collected with temperature monitoring results from each green space type and the interpretation of surface temperature based on Landsat 8 satellite image data to determine temperatures at different times of the year. Results showed that there was a significant correlation between types of urban green space and the surface temperature. Types of green space with a large area and vegetation indexes have a greater effect on temperature than areas with a smaller green space do. Green space types including forest green space, dedicated green space and agriculture green space have the most effect on the surface temperature. The forest area has the greatest influence on the temperature with a temperature difference of more than 1.6 degrees Celsius at 9:00 in the daytime. Besides, the results extracted from satellite images also show that the area of urban green space going to be reduced makes a contribution to increase the surface temperature of urban areas. The study results have established foundation for planning the green spaces in climate change challenges in Hue City.

Habitat complexity does not affect arthropod community composition in roadside greenspaces

Urban greenspaces including remnant patches of vegetation, backyard gardens and public parks provide important habitat for wildlife conservation. Maintaining and enhancing the conservation value of these spaces requires both an understanding of the biodiversity they support, and the factors, including habitat traits, influencing species occurrence. Roadside greenspaces, including road verges and median strips are often overlooked in current greenspace biodiversity studies. We quantified arthropod community assemblages in roadside and public park greenspaces, and determined if habitat complexity was an important trait influencing species composition in these areas. Using pitfall traps, we sampled ground dwelling arthropods along five major roads in the greater Sydney Region and in public parks. Whilst roadside greenspaces (road verges and median strips) and public parks supported significantly different arthropod assemblages, habitat complexity had no impact on community assemblage and neither factor affected the assemblage of key arthropods taxa including ants, beetles and spiders. Additionally, in public parks but not road side greenspaces we found an effect of habitat complexity on arthropod abundance; arthropods were more abundant in high complexity park sites. Our results highlight the unique arthropod community assemblage supported by roadside greenspaces, and suggest management practices like increasing habitat complexity may be important in some but not all urban greenspace types.

Mapping ecosystem services on brownfields in Leipzig, Germany

Urban green brownfields are a particular type of urban green space and contribute to the quality of life by providing a variety of ecosystem services (ES). In this study, we mapped the use of ES and perception of disservices (EDS) on brownfields in the city of Leipzig using the smartphone application MapNat. We assessed the personal valuation and motives of users in relation to site and vicinity characteristics. Results suggest that brownfields play a particular role in the set of urban green spaces, providing characteristic ES such as opportunities to recreate, relax and retreat, partly differing from or complementing ES in formal urban green spaces. We identified spatial use patterns depending on local characteristics and personal preferences. For example, less accessible sites were relatively high valued and often used for dog-walking. Vice versa, better accessible sites were rather visited for informal stays and ‘hang-outs’. The patterns of use identified in this study may be of interest for urban management and planning of public green spaces, especially if no immediate follow up use or conversion of brownfields is planned.

Assessing how green space types affect ecosystem services delivery in Porto, Portugal

Significant advances have been made in identifying, quantifying and valuing multiple urban ecosystem services (UES), yet this knowledge remains poorly implemented in urban planning and management. One of the reasons for this low implementation is the insufficient thematic and spatial detail in UES research to provide guidance for urban planners and managers. Acknowledging how patterns of UES delivery are related with vegetation structure and composition in urban green areas could help these stakeholders to target structural variables that increase UES provision. This investigation explored how different types of urban green spaces influence UES delivery in Porto, a Portuguese city, and how this variation is affected by a socioeconomic gradient. A stepwise approach was developed using two stratification schemes and a modelling tool to estimate urban forest structure and UES provision. This approach mapped explicit cold and hotspots of UES provision and discriminated the urban forest structural variables that influence UES at the local scale. Results revealed that different types of green spaces affect UES delivery as a direct result of the influence of structural variables of the urban forest. Furthermore, the uneven distribution of green spaces types across socioeconomic strata alters UES delivery across the city. This case study illustrates how a methodology adaptable to other geographic contexts can be used to map and analyze coupled social and ecological patterns, offering novel insights that are simple to understand and apply by urban planners and managers.

Locating provisioning ecosystem services in urban forests: Forageable woody species in New York City, USA

Scholarship on the ecosystem services provided by urban forests has focused on regulating and supporting services, with a growing body of research examining provisioning and cultural ecosystem services from farms and gardens in metropolitan areas. Using the case of New York, New York, USA, we propose a method to assess the supply of potential provisioning ecosystem services from species and spaces other than those explicitly designated for food production. We analyze the abundance and spatial distribution of trees and shrubs with known uses for food, medicine, craft, and other purposes across urban greenspace types. To do so, we created a database of all woody species known to occur in New York City, joining a citywide assessment of trees and shrubs with additional data from a metropolitan flora and a guide to native plants in the city. A second database of useful, or forageable, species was created by compiling information from a New York City-focused online foraging application and ten field guides chosen for the likelihood that prospective foragers would find and consult them. The City’s street tree inventory and associated GIS shapefile provided the basis for more detailed analyses of forageable woody species in this land use type. Our results show a substantial supply of potential provisioning ecosystem services from woody species in New York City. Coupled with growing literature on actual foraging in cities worldwide, these findings suggest implications for accountings of ecosystem services from urban forests as well as policy and management initiatives to enhance social-ecological resilience.

Mammal diversity and metacommunity dynamics in urban green spaces: implications for urban wildlife conservation.

As urban growth expands and natural environments fragment, it is essential to understand the ecological roles fulfilled by urban green spaces. To evaluate how urban green spaces function as wildlife habitat, we estimated mammal diversity and metacommunity dynamics in city parks, cemeteries, golf courses, and natural areas throughout the greater Chicago, Illinois, USA region. We found similar α-diversity (with the exception of city parks), but remarkably dissimilar communities in different urban green spaces. Additionally, the type of urban green space greatly influenced species colonization and persistence rates. For example, coyotes (Canis latrans) had the highest, but white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) the lowest probability of persistence in golf courses compared to other green space types. Further, most species had a difficult time colonizing city parks even when sites were seemingly available. Our results indicate that urban green spaces contribute different, but collectively important, habitats for maintaining and conserving biodiversity in cities.