Urbanization driving changes in plant species and communities – A global view

Ruas, Renata de Barros; Costa, Laís Mara Santana; Bered, Fernanda

doi:10.1016/j.gecco.2022.e02243

Cited by 51 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 183 publications

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“…The effects of urbanization on the community structure and functional diversity of pollinators could reduce the efficiency or frequency of pollen transfer and could lead to pollen limitation (Irwin et al, 2018). In addition, urbanization can affect abiotic and landscape features, the abundance of conspecific flowers and the diversity of flowering plants in an area (de Barros Ruas et al, 2022). These factors may have an impact on pollinator foraging patterns, visitation rates, conspecific pollen deposition and consequently influence plant reproduction (Pellissier et al, 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of urbanization on pollinators and pollination: A meta‐analysis

Liang

Theodorou

et al. 2023

Ecology Letters

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Urbanization is increasing worldwide, with major impacts on biodiversity, species interactions and ecosystem functioning. Pollination is an ecosystem function vital for terrestrial ecosystems and food security; however, the processes underlying the patterns of pollinator diversity and the ecosystem services they provide in cities have seldom been quantified. Here, we perform a comprehensive meta‐analysis of 133 studies examining the effects of urbanization on pollinators and pollination. Our results confirm the widespread negative impacts of urbanization on pollinator richness and abundance, with Lepidoptera being the most affected group. Furthermore, pollinator responses were found to be trait‐specific, with below‐ground nesting and solitary Hymenoptera, and spring flyers more severely affected by urbanization. Meanwhile, cities promote non‐native pollinators, which may exacerbate conservation risks to native species. Surprisingly, despite the negative effects of urbanization on pollinator diversity, pollination service measured as seed set is enhanced in non‐tropical cities likely due to abundant generalists and managed pollinators therein. We emphasize that the richness of local flowering plants could mitigate the negative impacts of urbanization on pollinator diversity. Overall, the results demonstrate the varying magnitudes of multiple moderators on urban pollinators and pollination services and could help guide conservation actions for biodiversity and ecosystem function for a sustainable future.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of urbanization on pollinators and pollination: A meta‐analysis

Liang

Theodorou

et al. 2023

Ecology Letters

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“…For instance, great tits ( Parus major ), a common European bird, adjust to city life through changes in genes that control their behaviour and brain development, preserving avian biodiversity and the ecosystem function they provide [106]. Similarly, urban trees, which develop resistance to air pollution and heat stress, underscore how the capacity of plants to adapt to urban stressors helps cities maintain their ecosystem function and resilience [107,108]. These trees form the backbone of urban green spaces that offer essential services, from air purification to heat mitigation and recreational spots.…”

Section: The Eco-evolutionary Dynamics Of Urban Sustainabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Cities of the Anthropocene: urban sustainability in an eco-evolutionary perspective

Alberti

2023

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

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Cities across the globe are driving systemic change in social and ecological systems by accelerating the rates of interactions and intensifying the links between human activities and Earth's ecosystems, thereby expanding the scale and influence of human activities on fundamental processes that sustain life. Increasing evidence shows that cities not only alter biodiversity, they change the genetic makeup of many populations, including animals, plants, fungi and microorganisms. Urban-driven rapid evolution in species traits might have significant effects on socially relevant ecosystem functions such as nutrient cycling, pollination, water and air purification and food production. Despite increasing evidence that cities are causing rapid evolutionary change, current urban sustainability strategies often overlook these dynamics. The dominant perspectives that guide these strategies are essentially static, focusing on preserving biodiversity in its present state or restoring it to pre-urban conditions. This paper provides a systemic overview of the socio-eco-evolutionary transition associated with global urbanization. Using examples of observed changes in species traits that play a significant role in maintaining ecosystem function and resilience, I propose that these evolutionary changes significantly impact urban sustainability. Incorporating an eco-evolutionary perspective into urban sustainability science and planning is crucial for effectively reimagining the cities of the Anthropocene. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Evolution and sustainability: gathering the strands for an Anthropocene synthesis’.

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“…Urbanization is a pervasive process with 476,000 ha of arable land are lost annually by the expansion of urban areas (World Resources Institute, 1996;Grimm et al, 2008). Urbanization alters both biotic and abiotic ecosystem properties within and surrounding the urban centre (Miles et al, 2019;Ruas et al, 2022). Differential selection of stress-coping mechanisms results from stressful environments like those found in cities.…”

Section: Environmental Testing Conditions-bridging the Gap Between Fi...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Daphnia as a model organism to probe biological responses to nanomaterials—from individual to population effects via adverse outcome pathways

et al. 2023

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The importance of the cladoceran Daphnia as a model organism for ecotoxicity testing has been well-established since the 1980s. Daphnia have been increasingly used in standardised testing of chemicals as they are well characterised and show sensitivity to pollutants, making them an essential indicator species for environmental stress. The mapping of the genomes of D. pulex in 2012 and D. magna in 2017 further consolidated their utility for ecotoxicity testing, including demonstrating the responsiveness of the Daphnia genome to environmental stressors. The short lifecycle and parthenogenetic reproduction make Daphnia useful for assessment of developmental toxicity and adaption to stress. The emergence of nanomaterials (NMs) and their safety assessment has introduced some challenges to the use of standard toxicity tests which were developed for soluble chemicals. NMs have enormous reactive surface areas resulting in dynamic interactions with dissolved organic carbon, proteins and other biomolecules in their surroundings leading to a myriad of physical, chemical, biological, and macromolecular transformations of the NMs and thus changes in their bioavailability to, and impacts on, daphnids. However, NM safety assessments are also driving innovations in our approaches to toxicity testing, for both chemicals and other emerging contaminants such as microplastics (MPs). These advances include establishing more realistic environmental exposures via medium composition tuning including pre-conditioning by the organisms to provide relevant biomolecules as background, development of microfluidics approaches to mimic environmental flow conditions typical in streams, utilisation of field daphnids cultured in the lab to assess adaption and impacts of pre-exposure to pollution gradients, and of course development of mechanistic insights to connect the first encounter with NMs or MPs to an adverse outcome, via the key events in an adverse outcome pathway. Insights into these developments are presented below to inspire further advances and utilisation of these important organisms as part of an overall environmental risk assessment of NMs and MPs impacts, including in mixture exposure scenarios.

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Urbanization driving changes in plant species and communities – A global view

Cited by 51 publications

References 183 publications

The effects of urbanization on pollinators and pollination: A meta‐analysis

The effects of urbanization on pollinators and pollination: A meta‐analysis

Cities of the Anthropocene: urban sustainability in an eco-evolutionary perspective

Daphnia as a model organism to probe biological responses to nanomaterials—from individual to population effects via adverse outcome pathways

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