Urban ecosystems are the most novel kind of ecosystems in terrestrial environments on Earth. Even as urbanization overcomes other natural habitats and displaces many species, cities also provide habitat for a surprising amount of native biodiversity, mixed in with non-native species. Urbanization therefore presents an opportunity to study how communities of species are assembled in novel environments.
This talk will summarize what we know about the extent of native species diversity, especially of birds, that still occurs in the world’s cities, and present a framework for understanding how urban ecosystems filter species from their regional species pools to assemble into urban communities. Madhusudan Katti of North Carolina State University will share results from ongoing analyses of urban biotic filtering using datasets from a number of cities, emphasizing the role of biogeography, phylogeny, and species traits along with the history of urban development in shaping observed biodiversity patterns in cities. Understanding the patterns and processes of urbanization’s impact on native species diversity is a key to better design and management of urban environments to reconcile human development with biodiversity conservation.