Neighboring Green Network and Landscape Metrics Explain Biodiversity within Small Urban Green Areas—A Case Study on Birds

Marufa Sultana, Max Müller, Magdalena Meyer and Ilse Storch
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Marufa Sultana: Wildlife Ecology and Management, Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany
Max Müller: Institute of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, University of Ulm, D-89081 Ulm, Germany
Magdalena Meyer: Institute of Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, University of Ulm, D-89081 Ulm, Germany
Ilse Storch: Wildlife Ecology and Management, Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Freiburg, D-79106 Freiburg, Germany

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 11, 1-11

Abstract: Cities’ green areas are fragmented patches and are often confined to smaller sizes than the higher built-up proportions. Such small-sized green areas can be essential components of green infrastructure to compensate for biodiversity loss. As a proxy to biodiversity, we studied birds in nine small green area locations of Freiburg and eight area locations in Regensburg in Germany. We investigated the neighboring green networks (distance to the nearest water body and another green area) and landscape metrics (patch abundance and habitat heterogeneity at a 1 km radius) that might benefit and explain bird richness and composition in small green areas. We found that the variations in the observed species richness and composition at the surveyed locations were better explained solely by green networks in Freiburg and by green networks and landscape metrics in Regensburg. In general, it indicates that a small green area could be biodiverse if its spatial distribution considers a nearby water body and other green areas, allowing a higher abundance of similar patches and habitat heterogeneity in the neighborhood.

Keywords: park; urbanization; green infrastructure; Freiburg; Regensburg (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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