Urban birds become less fearful following COVID-19 reopenings

Diamant, Eleanor S.; MacGregor-Fors, Ian; Blumstein, Daniel T.; Yeh, Pamela J.

doi:10.1098/rspb.2023.1338

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 54 publications

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“…Firstly, wildlife in urban spaces may become more tolerant of human presence as time progresses. For example, recent research has found that birds in urban spaces have been less fearful of humans following the COVID-19 pandemic (Diamant et al 2023). Our target species are also known to be common in urban spaces, meaning that they likely have higher tolerances to human presence and activity.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Human Recreational Activity Does Not Influence Open Cup Avian Nest Survival in Urban Greenspaces

Cull,

Guest,

Frei

et al. 2024

Preprint

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The breeding period of birds is a critical and sensitive period. Understanding how human use of urban greenspaces affects nest survival can improve our understanding of conserving breeding bird populations in cities and support science-based management of urban greenspaces that benefit both people and nature. We conducted a nest survival field study between April and August of 2023 in multiple greenspaces in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, the country’s second-largest city. We asked whether human presence (distance to trails and amount of human activity) influences the nest survival of four common open-cup nesting bird species. We also asked if variables traditionally associated with nest survival, vegetation concealment and seasonality, would influence nest survival. Our analyses surprisingly revealed no significant influence of human activity, vegetation concealment, and seasonality on nest survival for our target species. We found for nests that did fail, nests established during the earlier part of the nesting period failed faster. Within the limitations of our study system, our findings suggest that human presence is not negatively impacting the nesting success for our target bird species using urban greenspaces. Our study provides integrated science advice to land managers so they can support opportunities for people to connect with nature without causing trade-offs with biodiversity conservation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Human Recreational Activity Does Not Influence Open Cup Avian Nest Survival in Urban Greenspaces

Cull,

Guest,

Frei

et al. 2024

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Very few scientific publications and newspaper articles focus on catastrophic events and their effects on urban wildlife

Walters,

Cen,

Lung

et al. 2023

Urban Ecosyst

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The COVID-19 pandemic upended daily life and disrupted human activity in urban centers all over the world. Stay-at-home orders emptied urban spaces, removing or decreasing stressors on urban wildlife associated with human presence. Anecdotal observations of unusual urban wildlife behavior spread virally across social media, but some of these reports were proven false or fabricated. Here we examined both scientific publications and local newspapers to understand how extensively urban catastrophes are covered with respect to their effects on wildlife. We read all article titles from January 1980–June 2023 in 100 high impact journals in biology to determine if prior research exists that could inform our understanding of this phenomenon. Additionally, we used a keyword search to find scientific journal articles about wildlife responses during events in which large-scale evacuations of urban environments occurred. We found 37 scientific articles on this topic, with 13 of those published in the highest impact biology journals. The majority of publications identified (70%) were about wildlife responses to the COVID-19 public health response. Finally, we searched local newspapers in areas where hurricanes struck urban centers. We found 25 newspaper articles reporting on wildlife in relation to urban natural disasters. These were typically anecdotes, but nearly always consulted a credible, expert source. Ultimately, more research focused on urban areas before and after catastrophic or sudden changes will allow biologists to develop a baseline expectation for urban wildlife behavior in the absence of humans.

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Patterns of a sexually selected trait are not predictable across urban and non-urban populations of a songbird, the dark-eyed junco

Diamant,

Kang,

Yeh

2024

Urban Ecosyst

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Urbanization can result in novel selective pressures that can cause phenotypic differences amongst urban-tolerant species across urban and non-urban habitats. Here, we compared the size of the white tail patch (“tail white”), a sexual signaling trait, in two urban populations of dark-eyed juncos in comparison to neighboring non-urban populations. Contrary to our expectations, urban phenotypes did not differ from local wildlands in San Diego and Los Angeles counties in similar directions. While the San Diego population showed lower tail white compared to its neighboring wildland population, the Los Angeles population did not. The tail white of the Los Angeles population was not statistically different from that of the San Diego population, suggesting that urban populations may share similar environmental conditions yet face different selective clines due to urbanization. There were, however, differences between wildland populations. Differences in evolutionary histories, environmental conditions, and selective pressures within and outside urban areas may affect how urbanization facilitates population differentiation, even across urban populations of the same species.

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Urban birds become less fearful following COVID-19 reopenings

Cited by 4 publications

References 54 publications

Human Recreational Activity Does Not Influence Open Cup Avian Nest Survival in Urban Greenspaces

Human Recreational Activity Does Not Influence Open Cup Avian Nest Survival in Urban Greenspaces

Very few scientific publications and newspaper articles focus on catastrophic events and their effects on urban wildlife

Patterns of a sexually selected trait are not predictable across urban and non-urban populations of a songbird, the dark-eyed junco

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