Urbanisation generates multiple trait syndromes for terrestrial animal taxa worldwide

Amy K. Hahs (), Bertrand Fournier (), Myla F. J. Aronson, Charles H. Nilon, Adriana Herrera-Montes, Allyson B. Salisbury, Caragh G. Threlfall, Christine C. Rega-Brodsky, Christopher A. Lepczyk, Frank A. La Sorte, Ian MacGregor-Fors, J. Scott MacIvor, Kirsten Jung, Max R. Piana, Nicholas S. G. Williams, Sonja Knapp, Alan Vergnes, Aldemar A. Acevedo, Alison M. Gainsbury, Ana Rainho, Andrew J. Hamer, Assaf Shwartz, Christian C. Voigt, Daniel Lewanzik, David M. Lowenstein, David O’Brien, Desiree Tommasi, Eduardo Pineda, Ela Sita Carpenter, Elena Belskaya, Gábor L. Lövei, James C. Makinson, Joanna L. Coleman, Jon P. Sadler, Jordan Shroyer, Julie Teresa Shapiro, Katherine C. R. Baldock, Kelly Ksiazek-Mikenas, Kevin C. Matteson, Kyle Barrett, Lizette Siles, Luis F. Aguirre, Luis Orlando Armesto, Marcin Zalewski, Maria Isabel Herrera-Montes, Martin K. Obrist, Rebecca K. Tonietto, Sara A. Gagné, Sarah J. Hinners, Tanya Latty, Thilina D. Surasinghe, Thomas Sattler, Tibor Magura, Werner Ulrich, Zoltan Elek, Jennifer Castañeda-Oviedo, Ricardo Torrado, D. Johan Kotze () and Marco Moretti ()
Additional contact information
Amy K. Hahs: The University of Melbourne
Bertrand Fournier: University of Potsdam
Myla F. J. Aronson: The State University of New Jersey
Charles H. Nilon: University of Missouri
Adriana Herrera-Montes: University of Puerto Rico
Allyson B. Salisbury: The Morton Arboretum
Caragh G. Threlfall: The University of Sydney
Christine C. Rega-Brodsky: Pittsburg State University
Christopher A. Lepczyk: Auburn University
Frank A. La Sorte: Cornell University
Ian MacGregor-Fors: University of Helsinki
J. Scott MacIvor: University of Toronto Scarborough
Kirsten Jung: Ulm University
Max R. Piana: Northern Research Station
Nicholas S. G. Williams: The University of Melbourne
Sonja Knapp: Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Department of Community Ecology
Alan Vergnes: Univ Paul Valéry Montpellier 3
Aldemar A. Acevedo: Universidad de Chile
Alison M. Gainsbury: University of South Florida, St. Petersburg Campus, Department of Integrative Biology
Ana Rainho: Univ. of Lisbon
Andrew J. Hamer: Centre for Ecological Research
Assaf Shwartz: Technion – Israel Institute of Technology
Christian C. Voigt: Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research
Daniel Lewanzik: Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research
David M. Lowenstein: Michigan State University Extension, Macomb County
David O’Brien: Great Glen House
Desiree Tommasi: University of California Santa Cruz
Eduardo Pineda: Red de Biología y Conservación de Vertebrados. Instituto de Ecología, A.C. Carretera Antigua a Coatepec 351
Ela Sita Carpenter: Chesapeake Bay Field Office
Elena Belskaya: Russian Academy of Sciences
Gábor L. Lövei: Aarhus University, Flakkebjerg Research Centre
James C. Makinson: Western Sydney University
Joanna L. Coleman: Queens College at the City University of New York
Jon P. Sadler: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston
Jordan Shroyer: University of Missouri
Julie Teresa Shapiro: University of Lyon, French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES), Laboratory of Lyon
Katherine C. R. Baldock: Northumbria University
Kelly Ksiazek-Mikenas: Elmhurst University
Kevin C. Matteson: Miami University
Kyle Barrett: Clemson University
Lizette Siles: Área de Mastozoología, Museo de Historia Natural Alcide d’Orbigny
Luis F. Aguirre: Universidad Mayor de San Simón, c Sucre
Luis Orlando Armesto: Servicio Nacional de Aprendizaje (SENA)
Marcin Zalewski: Museum and Institute of Zoology of the Polish Academy of Sciences
Maria Isabel Herrera-Montes: Universidad del Valle
Martin K. Obrist: Biodiversity and Conservation Biology
Rebecca K. Tonietto: University of Michigan-Flint
Sara A. Gagné: University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Sarah J. Hinners: University of Utah
Tanya Latty: University of Sydney
Thilina D. Surasinghe: Bridgewater State University
Thomas Sattler: Swiss Ornithological Institute
Tibor Magura: University of Debrecen
Werner Ulrich: Nicolaus Copernicus University
Zoltan Elek: Plant Protection Institute, Eötvös Loránd Research Network
Jennifer Castañeda-Oviedo: Universidad de Pamplona
Ricardo Torrado: Secretaría de Educación del Municipio de Cúcuta
D. Johan Kotze: University of Helsinki
Marco Moretti: Biodiversity and Conservation Biology

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-14

Abstract: Abstract Cities can host significant biological diversity. Yet, urbanisation leads to the loss of habitats, species, and functional groups. Understanding how multiple taxa respond to urbanisation globally is essential to promote and conserve biodiversity in cities. Using a dataset encompassing six terrestrial faunal taxa (amphibians, bats, bees, birds, carabid beetles and reptiles) across 379 cities on 6 continents, we show that urbanisation produces taxon-specific changes in trait composition, with traits related to reproductive strategy showing the strongest response. Our findings suggest that urbanisation results in four trait syndromes (mobile generalists, site specialists, central place foragers, and mobile specialists), with resources associated with reproduction and diet likely driving patterns in traits associated with mobility and body size. Functional diversity measures showed varied responses, leading to shifts in trait space likely driven by critical resource distribution and abundance, and taxon-specific trait syndromes. Maximising opportunities to support taxa with different urban trait syndromes should be pivotal in conservation and management programmes within and among cities. This will reduce the likelihood of biotic homogenisation and helps ensure that urban environments have the capacity to respond to future challenges. These actions are critical to reframe the role of cities in global biodiversity loss.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39746-1

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