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1.
The aim of this study was to explore different components of avian diversity in two types of urban green areas, parks and cemeteries, in four European countries in relation to environmental characteristics. We studied bird species richness, functional diversity and evolutionary distinctiveness in 79 parks and 90 cemeteries located in four European countries: the Czech Republic, France, Italy and Poland.First, we found no significant differences between cemeteries and parks in bird diversity. However, in both parks and cemeteries, only: two community metrics were affected by different environmental characteristics, including local vegetation structure and presence of human-related structures. Species richness was positively correlated with tree coverage and site size, functional diversity was unrelated to any of the measured variables, while the mean evolutionary distinctiveness score was positively correlated with tree coverage and negatively associated with the coverage of flowerbeds and number of street lamps.Our findings can be useful for urban planning: by increasing tree coverage and site size it is possible to increase both taxonomic richness and evolutionary uniqueness of bird communities. In both parks and cemeteries, the potential association between light pollution and bird species richness was negligible. We also identified some thresholds where bird diversity was higher. Bird species richness was maximized in parks/cemeteries larger than 1.4 ha, with grass coverage lower than 65%. The evolutionary uniqueness of bird communities was higher in areas with tree coverage higher than 45%. In conclusion, the findings of this study provide evidence that cemeteries work similarly than urban parks supporting avian diversity. 相似文献
2.
The importance of biodiversity conservation is well recognized, and the loss of biodiversity is particularly evident in highly urbanized areas. On the other hand, green spaces inside cities, as parks, can provide a resource for maintaining and increasing biodiversity, especially for bird species. However, only a few studies have addressed the effects of vegetation structure and land use composition on different components of biodiversity.Here, we explored the response of bird community composition to environmental differences related to land use composition and vegetation structure in green spaces in the city of Beijing, China. We compared the values of taxonomic diversity, functional diversity and community evolutionary distinctiveness in breeding bird communities, among ten urban parks of the world's third most populous city. Variation partitioning analysis and generalized linear mixed models were used to explore the unique and shared effects of land use composition and vegetation structure on each biodiversity metric.Park size was not associated with the diversity of bird communities in Beijing. Land use composition was the best predictor of change in bird community composition, followed by vegetation structure at ground level and the intersection between land use and vegetation structure at tree level. Water coverage increased bird species richness, while the presence of large trees increased both taxonomic diversity and bird functional richness in urban parks. Finally, the presence of patches of deciduous trees showed a positive effect on the average score of evolutionary distinctiveness of bird communities. In conclusion, we highlight that different elements of the environment are supporting different components of bird community diversity. 相似文献
3.
Biodiversity in urban green areas has been widely explored in several bird studies because birds are known to be important bio-indicators. Many studies have investigated the different responses of bird communities to urbanization and land use changes in urban environments. However, there are still important knowledge gaps related to the impacts of the heterogeneity, spatial structure, and connectivity of green areas on avian diversity. Such information is needed for sustainable urban planning. In this study, we focused on the comparison of bird communities between urban parks in the heritage city of Olomouc and hardwood floodplain forests in the vicinity of the city. The results of the study indicate the high importance of urban parks for the maintenance of bird diversity even though urban parks are man-made habitats. The results highlight the importance of some native vegetation structures in urban parks (old trees, bush ecotones) for maintaining urban bird biodiversity. Some implications of the results can be widely used as a decision support tool for the management of urban green areas and for the planning of ecological networks in urban landscapes. 相似文献
4.
Urban parks can provide a resource for maintaining and increasing bird biodiversity. However, little research has been conducted to show the differences in bird community diversity between parks adjacent to mountains and rivers in the city center of highly urbanized areas. This study analysed whether the bird composition and species diversity differed between parks adjacent to Baiyun Mountain (hillside parks) and Pearl River (riverside parks) in Guangzhou, South China. From January 2018 to December 2020, 137927 birds representing 206 species were recorded. The results indicated that the number of species and individuals of birds were higher in hillside parks than in riverside parks in each season. The number of species and individuals was also higher in hillside parks than in riverside parks in different functional groups according to bird food type, residential type, and ecological type. The number of species shared by the two types of parks was 120. The unique birds' species number in hillside and riverside parks were 67 and 19, respectively. Bird diversity in terms of richness and Shannon index was higher significantly in hillside parks than in riverside parks in summer. Principal component analysis of environmental traits of 18 parks showed that plant traits in parks have relatively high and positive contribution. Correlation analysis indicated that bird diversity was positively affected by water area, the highest altitude, habitats diversity and tree evenness in park, while negatively regulated by building coverage around each park. The top 20 most abundant bird species accounted for 87.5% of the total birds in the study period. Nycticorax nycticorax, Urocissa erythroryncha and Podiceps ruficollis were observed more frequently in hillside parks, while Pycnonotus aurigaster, Passer montanus, Acridotheres cristatellus were observed more frequently in riverside parks. Principal coordinates analysis also indicated that bird communities significantly differed between hillside parks and riverside parks. In conclusion, our findings highlight the importance of conserving mountains and rivers as buffer zones for serious anthropogenic disturbance in the city center. We propose that the conservation of hillside parks is a priority strategy for enhancing urban birds biodiversity. 相似文献
5.
Natural parks are comprised of preserved forested natural areas that are undergoing natural ecological processes. These areas can offer a refuge for local biodiversity and contribute substantially to ecosystem services in both rural areas with relatively low population densities, as well as high-density urban areas. Forested natural parks located in urban areas should experience more stressful environmental conditions than nearby rural areas, yet we know relatively little about how urbanization impacts tree communities within these important natural habitats. To better understand the impact of urbanization on forests, we investigated the species composition, abundance, and diversity of midstory and canopy trees as well as tree seedlings in urban and rural natural parks in and around Cleveland, Ohio. We found that both urban and rural natural parks have similar tree abundance, but midstory and canopy trees as well as tree seedling communities in the urban natural parks included higher abundances of stress-tolerant species compared to rural parks. In addition, this pattern was driven by changes in native tree species, as we observed low abundance of invasive species. More stress-resistant native species in urban areas include Quercus rubra and Prunus serotina, in contrast to rural natural parks which are dominated by Acer spp. and Fagus grandifolia. Lastly, we show that urban and rural natural parks have similar species diversity within plots, but we found higher variation in community composition among urban natural parks compared to among rural parks. Furthermore, Q. rubra and P. serotina were significantly larger in rural natural parks, indicating that both environmental stress and successional stage could drive compositional differences. Thus, we show that urbanization can have unexpected effects on plant community composition and diversity. Our study refutes the idea that these are degraded habitats, highlights the need to conserve them, and suggests that characterization of local variation in self-assembled urban tree communities will provide the most accurate picture of their management needs and potential ecosystem services. 相似文献
6.
Although urban habitats contribute to the conservation of species diversity, urbanization has significantly reduced biodiversity by causing environmental changes such as habitat loss and fragmentation. Therefore, research on urban biodiversity studies has become increasingly important. Historical heritage sites are recognized as important habitats in remnant green spaces in urban areas. We aimed to evaluate the role of historical sites in conserving biodiversity in urban areas. As the land in these historical sites is not modified, they have the potential to conserve biodiversity through continued maintenance activities such as mowing and tree cutting. In Japan, Tamagawa-josui, a waterway that runs from west to east through the Tokyo megacity (35° 40′ N, 139° 25′ E), has been recognized as a civil engineering heritage landmark that preserves water utilization technology from the early modern period (1600s, Edo-era). The present study examined the relationships between plant diversity and green space in a historic site of a megacity (i.e., Tamagawa-josui) and determined the factors that influence plant diversity. Specifically, we examined the relationships between plant species indices (species richness and species compositions) and environmental factors (management, environmental conditions, and landscape factors). The present study analyzed spatial changes in the plant species composition in Tamagawa-josui. We demonstrated that tree canopy openness was positively correlated with plant species richness, and the increased disturbance associated with developing historical sites as urban parks was negatively correlated with native plant species richness. In addition, there was significant species turnover in the plant community from upstream to downstream in Tamagawa-josui, which could largely be explained by spatial factors. We demonstrated that historical sites can provide potential habitats for the conservation of the plant species diversity, which is based on the effectiveness of the management of their vegetation. 相似文献
7.
Urban green spaces provide critical social and ecological support for cities, but we know little about their diversity and composition in cities of the Global South. This is especially true of lesser known urban spaces such as sacred sites, which are of important cultural and biodiversity significance. We examine tree diversity and composition in sacred sites in Bengaluru, one of India’s fastest growing cities. We recorded 5504 trees from 93 species across 62 temples, churches, and Hindu, Christian and Muslim cemeteries in central areas of Bengaluru. Over half (52%) of the tree species were of native origin, a much higher proportion when compared to other green spaces in the city such as parks. Tree density in sacred sites was much higher than that in parks and informal settlements in Bengaluru. Temples and Hindu cemeteries contained the highest proportion of native species, with large numbers of Ficus benghalensis, a keystone sacred species. Trees in sacred spaces provide an important buffer against urban environmental stress in Indian cities, and serve as refuges for urban wildlife and biodiversity. We need greater information on these lesser known, but culturally significant alternate spaces. They play an important, though ignored role in the environmental sustainability of rapidly growing cities in the Global South. 相似文献
8.
Nearctic-Neotropical migratory birds are threatened by land-use change throughout their complex annual cycles. While urbanization is an essential driver of land-use change, it is unclear how it affects migrant birds. Although migratory birds are more diverse in non-urban patches of native vegetation than in urban areas, neotropical cities can host diverse assemblages of overwintering migrant birds. Migratory birds in neotropical cities tend to be closely associated with urban green areas (UGAs). However, how their presence and abundance are affected by the habitat elements of UGAs and the urban matrix of neotropical cities is poorly understood. In this study, we compared the migratory bird species richness and abundances among UGAs and the urban matrix of the southern section of the megacity of Mexico City and native vegetation sites outside the city. Our results show that UGAs in neotropical cities provide habitats capable of maintaining complex overwintering migratory bird assemblages with local trees as critical features. We also assess the role that UGAs' characteristics play in determining migrant bird assemblages. We conducted bird censuses and measured habitat traits to determine how migrant bird assemblages are related to the habitat features of our study sites. We measured local, buffer, and spatial habitat features of each UGA. We found 23 overwintering migrant species in the three habitats, with 22 present within UGAs. Both UGAs and urban matrix sites had higher estimated species richness of migrant birds than non-urban native vegetation sites located outside the city. Only local features of UGAs affected migrant birds. While tree abundance in UGAs was positively associated with migratory bird species richness, the proportion of tree coverage was positively related to bird abundance. Our results show that UGAs in neotropical cities can maintain complex overwintering migratory bird assemblages, with trees being the most critical habitat feature. As a result, UGA management focused on maintaining trees and increasing their numbers can improve habitat conditions for migratory birds overwintering in neotropical cities. 相似文献
9.
Promoting and preserving biodiversity in the urban forest 总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1
Efforts at mitigating global biodiversity loss have often focused on preserving large, intact natural habitats. However, preserving biodiversity should also be an important goal in the urban environment, especially in highly urbanized areas where little natural habitat remains. Increasingly, research at the city/county scale as well as at the landscape scale reveals that urban areas can contain relatively high levels of biodiversity. Important percentages of species found in the surrounding natural habitat, including endangered species, have been found in the urban forest.
This contribution concisely highlights some examples of urban biodiversity research from various areas of the world. Key issues involved in understanding the patterns and processes that affect urban biodiversity, such as the urban–rural gradient and biotic homogenization, are addressed. The potential for urban areas to harbor considerable amounts of biodiversity needs to be recognized by city planners and urban foresters so that management practices that preserve and promote that diversity can be pursued. Management options should focus on increasing biodiversity in all aspects of the urban forest, from street trees to urban parks and woodlots. 相似文献
10.
Land cover change, predominantly habitat conversion to agricultural use and urbanization, has recently been recognized as
the primary cause of biodiversity loss in terrestrial ecosystems. We evaluated the relative effects of urban and agricultural
landscapes on anuran species richness and the abundance of six anuran species found at breeding ponds in and around the cities
of Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec. We performed six call surveys at 29 permanent focal ponds surrounded by one of three
landscape contexts: primarily urban, primarily agricultural, and primarily forested. We also measured three local pond variables
to control for the effects of local habitat quality in our analyses. We found that anuran species richness was significantly
lower in breeding ponds in urban landscapes compared to forested and agricultural landscapes, which exhibited no significant
difference in species richness. The abundances of individual anuran species were also consistently lower in urban landscapes
for all species except one, which exhibited no response to landscape type. Three species had their highest abundances in ponds
in forested landscapes, whereas two species had their highest abundances in ponds in agricultural landscapes. We conclude
that ponds embedded in urban landscapes support lower biodiversity than ponds in agricultural settings. We suggest that landscapes
composed of a mosaic of forest and open habitats surrounding wetlands would hold the highest biodiversity of these species. 相似文献
11.
Birds may use urban parks as shelter and refuge, contributing with numerous ecosystem services upon which humans and other organisms depend on. To safeguard these services, it is important that bird communities of urban environments hold some degree of resilience, which refers to the capacity of a system to absorb disturbances and changes, while maintaining its functions and structures. Here we assessed the resilience of the bird community inhabiting an urban park in the Southeast region of Brazil. We classified birds in feeding guilds and identified discontinuities and aggregations of body masses (i.e., scales) using hierarchical cluster analysis. We then calculated five resilience indices for our urban park and for a preserved continuous forest (reference area): the average richness of functions, diversity of functions, evenness of functions, and redundancy of functions within- and cross-scale. The urban park had less species, lower feeding guild richness, and lower within-scale redundancy than the reference area. However, they had similar proportion of species in each function, diversity of functions, evenness of functions, and cross-scale redundancy. The lower species richness and, consequently, the lack of some species performing some ecological functions may be responsible for the overall lower resilience in the urban park. Our results suggest that the bird community of the urban park is in part resilient, as it maintained many biological functions, indicating some environmental quality despite the high anthropogenic impacts of this area. We believe that urban forest remnants with more complex and diverse vegetation are possibly more likely to maintain higher resilience in the landscape than open field parks or parks with suppressed or altered vegetation. We propose that raising resilience in the urban park would possibly involve increasing vegetation complexity and heterogeneity, which could increase biodiversity in a large scale. 相似文献
12.
Marie-Hélène Lizée Stéphanie Manel Jean-Fran?ois Mauffrey Thierry Tatoni Magali Deschamps-Cottin 《Landscape Ecology》2012,27(2):159-169
The aim of this paper is to examine the role of urban public parks in maintaining connectivity and butterfly assemblages.
Using a regression framework, we first test the relative importance of park size and isolation in predicting abundance and
species richness of butterfly assemblages across a set of 24 public parks within a large metropolitan area, Marseille (South-East
France). Then, we focus on landscape features that affect diversity patterns of the recorded butterfly communities. In this
second part, the urban landscape surrounding each park is described (within a 1 × 1 km window) according to two major components:
vegetated areas (habitat patches) and impervious or built areas (matrix patches). Specifically, we aim to test whether the
incorporation of this built component (matrix) in the landscape analysis provides new insights into the understanding of ecological
connectivity in the urban environment. We found a significant effect of both matrix configuration (shape complexity of the
built patches) and distance from regional species pool (park isolation) on diversity of butterflies that overrides park size
in their contribution to variation in species richness. This result suggests that many previous studies of interactions between
biodiversity and urban landscape have overlooked the influence of the built elements. 相似文献
13.
As the world becomes more urbanized, urban cemeteries may become increasingly valuable for biodiversity conservation as cemeteries are ubiquitous elements of the green infrastructure in cities worldwide. By implementing a multi-taxon approach at different spatial extents, we analyzed habitat functions of a large urban cemetery in Berlin (Weiÿensee Jewish Cemetery) and explored related environmental variables. This cemetery is an outstanding cultural heritage site but it also stands for old urban cemeteries that have progressed to urban woodland, an ecosystem type that exists in many regional and religious contexts. The cemetery provided a habitat for 604 species; species of conservation concern comprised 1.6⿿100% of total species among different groups of taxa (in decreasing order: bats, birds, lichens, bryophytes, carabids, vascular plants, spiders). Species richness and species composition at the plot level were significantly related to differences in management intensity and resulting vegetation structures but differed among taxonomic groups. In vascular plants, carabids and spiders, the species composition varied significantly with habitat age, and there was a set of characteristic species for different age classes in each species group. Our results thus support the use of differentiated management approaches to maintain habitat heterogeneity by allowing wilderness development in some parts of a cemetery while keeping others more open. Since these aims can be combined with efforts to preserve outstanding grave architectures and allow access to visitors, our study indicates ways of reconciling conflicting aims of heritage preservation and biodiversity conservation, a promising perspective for biodiversity conservation in culturally shaped urban landscapes. We conclude that cemeteries provide important cultural ecosystem services within the urban green infrastructure. 相似文献
14.
Pocket parks in a compact city: how do birds respond to increasing residential density? 总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1
Karen Ikin R. Matthew Beaty David B. Lindenmayer Emma Knight Joern Fischer Adrian D. Manning 《Landscape Ecology》2013,28(1):45-56
The desire to improve urban sustainability is motivating many city planners to adopt growth strategies that increase residential density, leading to substantial changes to urban landscapes. What effect this change will have on biodiversity remains unclear, but it is expected that the role of public greenspace in providing wildlife habitat will become critical. We explored the role of urban “pocket parks” as habitat for birds, and how this role changed with increasing residential density in the surrounding neighbourhood. We found that parks in neighbourhoods with high levels of public greenspace (corresponding to less residential land) supported more bird species and individuals overall, and more woodland-dependent species, insectivores and hollow-nesters. Total greenspace area was more important (included in the best ranked models for all bird responses) than the configuration (number, average size and connectivity) of greenspace patches. The majority of species were common suburban birds, indicating that species we assume are tolerant to urban areas will be negatively affected by increasing residential density. Parks form part of an interconnected network of urban open space. For parks to continue to support a diverse native bird community, the network must be viewed, managed, and maintained in its entirety. We suggest three key management actions to improve the bird diversity values of urban greenspaces in compact cities: (1) Increase urban greenspace cover in residential neighbourhoods. (2) Increase vegetation structure in greenspace. (3) Encourage homeowners to plant trees and shrubs. 相似文献
15.
In a world of increasing urban areas and their subsequent negative effect on biodiversity, university campuses arise as environmentally friendly designs that can help enhancing biodiversity. However, current information on the topic is mainly based on single-campus studies, taxonomic diversity variables (e.g., species richness), and specific geographic regions like Asia or North America. Multi-campus comparisons, studies on other components of biodiversity (e.g., functional or phylogenetic diversity) and biodiversity information from other regions of the world are needed to generalize the previous findings. In this study, we try to fill in these gaps by simultaneously investigating taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity of bird communities on 15 university campuses of Spain, which is located within the Mediterranean hotspot of biodiversity where no previous study on this topic have been conducted. We compared campus areas with other randomly selected urban areas to test whether university campuses hold higher levels of bird diversity than non-campus areas. We also analyzed other environmental variables (e.g., green and building cover in and around campuses) to identify whether their influence in university campuses varies from other urban areas. Our results show that taxonomic diversity was higher within university campuses compared to other areas, but this pattern was not confirmed for functional and phylogenetic diversity. We found that grass cover, buildings, and the green area around the study areas have different associations with taxonomic, functional, or phylogenetic diversity respectively in campuses or non-campus areas. Our findings highlight the importance of university campuses for the conservation of Mediterranean urban biodiversity and support their use as relevant resources for promoting nature conservation among citizens. 相似文献
16.
The near-to-nature urban forestry concept and practices are widely recognized for urban greening, urban ecosystem restoration, urban greenspace management for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services provision. However, the regeneration and succession of urban vegetation are rarely studied due to the complex settings of the urban environment. To this end, we conducted a large-scale field investigation in the metropolitan area of Beijing, China to explore the spatial variations in plant species composition and diversity in soil seed banks, and their similarity to the aboveground vegetation to assess the potential of urban plant regeneration. Overall, 657 vegetation and soil sampling plots from 219 grids, measuring 2 km × 2 km each, were investigated within two perpendicular 10 km wide transects running across the urban center in north-south and east-west directions within the 6th Ring Road of the city. We recorded a total of 102 plant species in soil seed banks, including 13 tree species, 10 shrub species, and 79 herb species. We found that the soil seed bank species diversity and its similarity to that of the aboveground vegetation communities decreased significantly with the urbanization intensity. Higher urbanization intensity is typically associated with increased human management and a reduction in Greenspace Area (GSA). Soil seed bank species richness increased significantly when GSA exceeded 45 % and the similarity of species composition and diversity between soil seed banks and aboveground vegetation communities was the highest in forest parks. This suggests that habitats under forest park management are more conducive to plant regeneration. Soil seed bank species diversity first increased and then decreased significantly with increased distance to the city center, whereas the species similarity between the soil seed banks and the aboveground vegetation communities showed little change with the ring roads going out. The results of this study have important implications for further understanding the potential for urban vegetation regeneration and sustainability, which have significant implications for urban biodiversity conservation and restoration. 相似文献
17.
The level of tree species diversity in urban tree populations can have serious implications for urban forest resilience and has a direct impact on ecosystem functioning at the local level. Few studies have measured the relationship between tree species diversity and vulnerability in UK urban forests. This study analysed the species composition, species diversity and the vulnerability to pests and diseases of 10,149 public trees in the London borough of Westminster across three land use types: housing, parks, and highways. Tree species diversity was significantly different across these land use types (Shannon’s diversity index (H) was 2.47 for housing sites, 1.63 for parks and 0.83 for highways) and we found that higher diversity appears to result in reduced vulnerability, evidenced by negative correlations between tree species diversity and susceptibility to pests and diseases. A stronger negative correlation was found between vulnerability and species richness than between vulnerability and Gini-Simpson’s diversity index. Our study reinforces the role of biodiversity indices in establishing and monitoring baseline levels of UK urban tree diversity. Our findings may inform future tree planting projects, help to ensure that development does not negatively affect urban tree diversity and inform proactive strategies for urban trees to contribute to wider biodiversity conservation. 相似文献
18.
Urban plant diversity influences the social functioning and well-being of urban dwellers. However, the patterns and drivers of plant diversity in tropical urban areas are still not entirely understood. In response to the knowledge deficiencies in this area, we investigated spontaneous and cultivated plant richness and their phylogenetic diversity and relatedness in 260 Urban Functional Units (UFUs), which represented nine different land use types according to anthropogenic function, in the tropical coastal city of Zhanjiang, China. Plant diversity was modelled as a function of UFU characteristics and human maintenance practices. Spontaneous species richness was highest in urban villages and vacant lands and lowest in transportation areas, while phylogenetic diversity was highest in utilities and lowest in parks. In comparison, cultivated species richness was highest in multi-family residential areas and lowest in vacant lands, while phylogenetic diversity of cultivated species was highest in commercial/industry areas and lowest in agriculture areas. The number of cultivated species and the degree of phylogenetic relatedness of spontaneous species were positively correlated with the human population density. The phylogenetic diversity of cultivated species within UFUs was generally higher than that of spontaneous species. Human maintenance of landscapes acted as an environmental filter for spontaneous species, but also promoted the number of cultivated plants. We conclude that appropriate investment in urban green areas may improve both plant species richness and phylogenetic diversity in urban environments. 相似文献
19.
Biodiversity conservation in urban areas has become significant not only because of increasing human population in urban centers but also because it is one of the innovative ways to conserve biodiversity as suggested by various global environmental conventions. The present study was conducted with the purpose of assessing diversity and density of bird and woody species in some greenspaces of Delhi, the rapidly urbanizing capital of India. The landscape of Delhi consists of a broad spectrum of environments ranging from the city forests to highly modified artificial landscapes in certain parks. We assessed bird and woody vegetation in 20 m×50 m belt transects in each of the 19 randomly selected greenspaces of varying size. Results exhibit a negative relationship between the density of exotic woody species and bird diversity. Specifically, Prosopis juliflora – an exotic, which was the most abundant tree in our samples – exhibited a negative relationship with bird diversity. Principal component analysis (PCA) reveals that forest-preferring bird species increase with increasing greenspaces size, shrub diversity and shrub density. We conclude that maintaining larger greenspaces with high structural diversity may be effective in maintaining plant and bird diversity in the study area. 相似文献
20.
Habitat fragmentation is considered a major cause of biodiversity loss, both on terrestrial and marine environments. Understanding the effects of habitat fragmentation on the structure and dynamics of natural communities is extremely important to support management actions for biodiversity conservation. However, the effects of habitat fragmentation on marine communities are still poorly understood. Here we evaluated whether habitat fragmentation affects the structure of epifaunal communities in the sublittoral zone, in the northern coast of São Paulo state, Brazil. Five experimental landscapes were constructed, each one forming a large continuous patch. After 4 weeks, each landscape was cut on three patches of different sizes. Epifaunal macroinvertebrate communities were sampled at the edge and interior of experimental landscapes before manipulation to evaluate edge effects. After four more weeks, communities from the three patch sizes were also sampled to evaluate patch size effects. We compared the diversity of communities at different levels of fragmentation by total abundance, rarefied taxon richness, Shannon–Wiener diversity index, Simpson’s dominance index, and abundance of dominant taxa. Higher taxon richness and gastropod abundance were recorded in the patch edges, but no significant differences were found among patch sizes. We found a significant effect of habitat fragmentation, with lower abundances of Gammaridea (the dominant taxon), Ophyuroidea, and Pycnogonida after the experimental fragmentation. Lower abundances of dominant taxa resulted in higher diversity and lower dominance in fragmented landscapes when compared to integral, pre-manipulation landscapes. Our results suggest that fragmentation of landscapes in the system studied can reduce dominance, and that even small patch sizes can be important for the conservation of macroinvertebrate diversity. 相似文献