The role of domestic gardens in the maintenance of biodiversity in urban areas: applying landscape principles

Résumé du document

Nowadays, landscape ecology is adopted not only in natural areas but in the urban too. Nowadays, the urban population had resorted to adopting landscape ecology to create more ?green spaces' in the urban setup and also to instill awareness among the scientific community which promotes the improvement of biodiversity in urban areas that in turn leads towards the development of greenway planning all over the world. This is implemented by establishing gardens, which are considered as ecological greenways and present a potential significance for the maintenance of biodiversity by providing a substantial proportion of green space in urban areas. To assess the role of domestic gardens in the maintenance of biodiversity within urban areas, the "Biodiversity of Urban Garden in Sheffield? (BUGS) project provided good information about the biodiversity in domestic gardens.

Extraits

[...] First of all, to understand the role of domestic gardens in the maintenance of biodiversity, this paper is based on a large project calls BUGS (Biodiversity in Urban Gardens in Sheffields). This study has been conducted in the aim to demonstrate that “gardens constitute a major component of the city by area and provide not only ‘green space' but a complex and heterogeneous mosaic of habitats, supporting a substantial diversity of plants and animals, and having many unique ecological features” (Loram, Tratalos et al. [...]

[...] 2005) In this survey, (Gaston, Warren et al. 2005) assumed that the ponds have a mean size of 2,5 m2 and thus represent an area of standing water of 6,3ha. Even thought this total area is quite small, it is well widespread and above all “well fragmented into many tiny patches” (Gaston, Warren et al. 2005). Furthermore, these ponds present an advantage regarding to the natural ponds with natural standing water since they get water all year around and hence, are relatively not short lived. [...]

[...] Gaston, K. J., R. M. Smith, et al. (2005). "Urban domestic gardens experimental tests of methods for increasing biodiversity." Biodiversity and Conservation 00014(00002): 395-414. Gaston, K. J., P. H. Warren, et al. (2005). [...]

[...] "The role of spatio-temporal patch connectivity at the landscape level: an example in a bird distribution." Landscape and Urban Planning 37-43. Fabos, J. G. (1995). "Introduction and overview: the greenway movement, uses and potentials of greenways." Landscape and Urban Planning 1-13. Fabos, J. G. and R. L. Ryan (2006). "An introduction to greenway planning around the world." Landscape and Urban Planning 1-6. [...]

[...] The compost heaps appear to be useful in the garden since they provide habitats for certain invertebrate species we can not find in the other garden environments surrounding. (Gaston, Warren et al. 2005). Finally, it is obvious that the trees provide an excellent tool for the biodiversity. Indeed, Atwell (2000) as cited by Gaston, Warren et al.(2005) argues that general urban trees have benefits on the urban climate, for example, by reducing carbon concentration and playing a role in the heat, air movement and humidity control. [...]