Urban ecology and ecosite classifcation Flashcards
What is an ecosystem engineer?
A keystone species that fundamentally shape the communities and ecosystems that they’re in
What is ecology in cities?
Examining only the pockets of nature that are inside cities
What is ecology of cities?
Seeing the entire city as an integrated ecosystem, including the humans
How do urban plant communities benefit other organisms?
Gardens provide food for pollinators, especially for bees since there will be something that is flowering the whole season. Become a refuge for birds and bats
What are 9 things urban plant communities can do to help the urban ecosystem?
- Reduce impact of heat
- Mitigates issues with storm-water runoff
- Reduces noise
- Reduce airborne pollution
- Reduce nutrient pollution and eutrophication
- Increase activity levels and the quality of life of people
- Provide habitat for animals and other organisms
- Help protect species that are threatened by humans
- Reduce the environmental footprint of cities
How do urban plant communities reduce the impact of heat in cities?
They provide shade and evapotranspiration allows cities to “sweat”
How do urban plant communities reduce airborne pollution in cities?
Can reduce particulate pollution by putting them in forms that aren’t breathable
What are 4 issues that are caused by urban plants?
- Damage to the built environment
- Increase in problematic animal-human encounters
- Allergies
- Increase ozone levels
What are ecosite classifications based on?
Mainly vegetation, but also geophysical parameters
Why are the problems with ecosite classifications in cities?
Lots of non-native and invasive species, has buildings instead of geophysical features, lots of microhabitats, different things affect soil quality
How could we modify the ecosite classification protocols to work better for cities?
Factor in non-native and invasive species, factor in the buildings, scale down the spatial assessment for ecosites
