Pub Date : 2025-08-08DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00276-0
Chengxiu Li, Le Yu, Robert Ndugwa, Adrian J. Bailey, Xiaoling Zhang, Francis Oloo, Ellasy Gulule Chimimba, Xiangzhen Deng, Jim Wright
Slums house nearly one-quarter of the global urban population, yet their spatial and socioeconomic dynamics remain poorly understood, hindering progress toward the United Nations’ commitment to ‘leave no one behind’. Here, focusing on sub-Saharan Africa, we integrate geospatial data with household surveys to map slum prevalence and asset-based wealth inequalities across 32 countries. We identify that 54.6% of the urban population in these countries live in slums, with lower wealth levels compared with non-slum areas. Despite a reduction in the proportion of slum populations over the past two decades, wealth inequalities have risen, especially in countries with substantial slum populations. This study highlights profound inequalities in urban essential services, living conditions and household wealth in sub-Saharan African countries, emphasizing the importance of fine-scale analysis of slum distributions and associated wealth inequalities to inform inclusive programs. Understanding who is being left behind, where and how is crucial to advancing the United Nations’ commitment to ‘leaving no one behind’. This study maps urban slums and wealth distribution across 32 sub-Saharan African countries, revealing a decreasing proportion of the population living in slums, yet a concerning rise in wealth inequality.
{"title":"Mapping urban slums and their inequality in sub-Saharan Africa","authors":"Chengxiu Li, Le Yu, Robert Ndugwa, Adrian J. Bailey, Xiaoling Zhang, Francis Oloo, Ellasy Gulule Chimimba, Xiangzhen Deng, Jim Wright","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00276-0","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00276-0","url":null,"abstract":"Slums house nearly one-quarter of the global urban population, yet their spatial and socioeconomic dynamics remain poorly understood, hindering progress toward the United Nations’ commitment to ‘leave no one behind’. Here, focusing on sub-Saharan Africa, we integrate geospatial data with household surveys to map slum prevalence and asset-based wealth inequalities across 32 countries. We identify that 54.6% of the urban population in these countries live in slums, with lower wealth levels compared with non-slum areas. Despite a reduction in the proportion of slum populations over the past two decades, wealth inequalities have risen, especially in countries with substantial slum populations. This study highlights profound inequalities in urban essential services, living conditions and household wealth in sub-Saharan African countries, emphasizing the importance of fine-scale analysis of slum distributions and associated wealth inequalities to inform inclusive programs. Understanding who is being left behind, where and how is crucial to advancing the United Nations’ commitment to ‘leaving no one behind’. This study maps urban slums and wealth distribution across 32 sub-Saharan African countries, revealing a decreasing proportion of the population living in slums, yet a concerning rise in wealth inequality.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 11","pages":"1037-1048"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145533785","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-08-06DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00298-8
Barret L. Kurylyk, Christopher J. Russoniello, Julia A. Guimond, Shellie Habel, Holly A. Michael, Michael C. Sukop, Alicia M. Wilson
Groundwater-associated hazards in coastal cities can be as acute as surface flood hazards, but are often overlooked, more persistent and harder to identify. Here we discuss how climate change is causing flooding and corrosion of coastal infrastructure by driving groundwater rise and salinization.
{"title":"Invisible groundwater threats to coastal urban infrastructure","authors":"Barret L. Kurylyk, Christopher J. Russoniello, Julia A. Guimond, Shellie Habel, Holly A. Michael, Michael C. Sukop, Alicia M. Wilson","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00298-8","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00298-8","url":null,"abstract":"Groundwater-associated hazards in coastal cities can be as acute as surface flood hazards, but are often overlooked, more persistent and harder to identify. Here we discuss how climate change is causing flooding and corrosion of coastal infrastructure by driving groundwater rise and salinization.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 9","pages":"775-777"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145123736","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-08-04DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00296-w
Amir AghaKouchak, Annika Hjelmstad, Jonathan Lucy, Jesse Duku, Nitheshnirmal Sadhasivam, Susanna Werth, Salih Babagiray, Debora Yumi de Oliveira, Azara Boschee, Mojtaba Sadegh, Farshid Vahedifard, John T. Abatzoglou, Marco Turco, Mikiztli S. Ortiz, Manoochehr Shirzaei, Parham Azimi, Lauren Ferguson, Joseph G. Allen
The 2025 Los Angeles fires exposed the escalating threat of urban fires and their potential to trigger major human disasters. This Comment outlines key policy strategies to strengthen fire resilience and reframe urban fires as both a climate risk and a national security concern.
{"title":"Building urban fire resilience to enhance national security","authors":"Amir AghaKouchak, Annika Hjelmstad, Jonathan Lucy, Jesse Duku, Nitheshnirmal Sadhasivam, Susanna Werth, Salih Babagiray, Debora Yumi de Oliveira, Azara Boschee, Mojtaba Sadegh, Farshid Vahedifard, John T. Abatzoglou, Marco Turco, Mikiztli S. Ortiz, Manoochehr Shirzaei, Parham Azimi, Lauren Ferguson, Joseph G. Allen","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00296-w","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00296-w","url":null,"abstract":"The 2025 Los Angeles fires exposed the escalating threat of urban fires and their potential to trigger major human disasters. This Comment outlines key policy strategies to strengthen fire resilience and reframe urban fires as both a climate risk and a national security concern.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 9","pages":"778-780"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145123469","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-08-04DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00294-y
Xin Sun, Jake M. Robinson, Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Anton Potapov, Haifeng Yao, Biao Zhu, Alexei V. Tiunov, Linxiu Zhang, Faith Ka Shun Chan, Scott X. Chang, Martin F. Breed, Nico Eisenhauer, Stefan Scheu, Zhipeng Li, Yong-Guan Zhu
Soils in urban greenspaces often support higher microbial richness but with more homogenous communities than in natural ecosystems. However, it is not known how urbanization impacts the diversity and homogeneity of soil communities in urban greenspaces compared with other highly managed ecosystems such as farmlands. Here we conducted a continental-scale study spanning 13 cities and four land uses (city parks, residential areas, and adjacent forests and farmlands) in China. We found that urban ecosystems consistently support higher local soil bacterial, protist and fungal (but not metazoan) richness than farmlands and forests. This elevated richness was closely related to higher pH in urban ecosystem soils. Urban greenspaces also supported more homogenous soil communities than farmlands. The results indicate that urbanization drives biotic homogenization and increases synchronous responses to environmental stressors in urban greenspaces at a continental scale. Our findings have important implications for managing soil ecosystem resilience and functional diversity in cities of the future. The soils of urban greenspaces are strikingly rich. This study finds that the variety of microbial life there is linked to acidic conditions and that this diversity is more homogenous than found in farmland soils.
{"title":"Unforeseen high continental-scale soil microbiome homogenization in urban greenspaces","authors":"Xin Sun, Jake M. Robinson, Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo, Anton Potapov, Haifeng Yao, Biao Zhu, Alexei V. Tiunov, Linxiu Zhang, Faith Ka Shun Chan, Scott X. Chang, Martin F. Breed, Nico Eisenhauer, Stefan Scheu, Zhipeng Li, Yong-Guan Zhu","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00294-y","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00294-y","url":null,"abstract":"Soils in urban greenspaces often support higher microbial richness but with more homogenous communities than in natural ecosystems. However, it is not known how urbanization impacts the diversity and homogeneity of soil communities in urban greenspaces compared with other highly managed ecosystems such as farmlands. Here we conducted a continental-scale study spanning 13 cities and four land uses (city parks, residential areas, and adjacent forests and farmlands) in China. We found that urban ecosystems consistently support higher local soil bacterial, protist and fungal (but not metazoan) richness than farmlands and forests. This elevated richness was closely related to higher pH in urban ecosystem soils. Urban greenspaces also supported more homogenous soil communities than farmlands. The results indicate that urbanization drives biotic homogenization and increases synchronous responses to environmental stressors in urban greenspaces at a continental scale. Our findings have important implications for managing soil ecosystem resilience and functional diversity in cities of the future. The soils of urban greenspaces are strikingly rich. This study finds that the variety of microbial life there is linked to acidic conditions and that this diversity is more homogenous than found in farmland soils.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 8","pages":"759-769"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145123732","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-08-04DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00301-2
Our study reveals the shortage of green infrastructure per capita in the most informal neighborhoods of sub-Saharan African cities by linking individual trees to neighborhood informality. Continued urban expansion is projected to result in tree cover loss beyond current urban boundaries, which highlights the contradiction between the urgent need to upgrade informal settlements and current socioeconomic constraints.
{"title":"Remote-sensing data reveal tree inequity in informal settlements in sub-Saharan African cities","authors":"","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00301-2","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00301-2","url":null,"abstract":"Our study reveals the shortage of green infrastructure per capita in the most informal neighborhoods of sub-Saharan African cities by linking individual trees to neighborhood informality. Continued urban expansion is projected to result in tree cover loss beyond current urban boundaries, which highlights the contradiction between the urgent need to upgrade informal settlements and current socioeconomic constraints.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 11","pages":"1024-1025"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145533780","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-08-04DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00284-0
Xihong Lian, Wei Liu, Zejin Liu, Limin Jiao, Charlie M. Shackleton, Bingjie Li, Jing Zhong, Rui Yang, Mengjing Fu, Haoran Zhang, Neema Simon Sumari, Yaolin Liu
Urban trees are crucial for enhancing the social and ecological qualities of urban environments, but their distribution and correlates in informal settlements across African cities remain unclear. Here we map out 53 million individual trees across 54 African cities and investigate their relationship with neighborhood environments along a gradient of urban informality. Our findings reveal the shortage of green infrastructure per capita in the most informal neighborhoods of African cities. Under the assumptions of continued urban expansion, 28 cities are projected to lose tree cover beyond current urban boundaries by 2050. This underscores the urgent need to upgrade informal settlements, although such efforts are often constrained by current socioeconomic conditions. Our study underscores the importance of fine-grained spatial data in informing tree retention strategies during urban upgrading and expansion and emphasizes that trees and green spaces must be recognized as integral components of sustainable urban development in Africa. This study maps individual trees across 54 African cities to examine the relationship between tree cover and urban informality. The findings highlight a shortage of green infrastructure in informal settlements and the need for data-driven strategies to integrate trees into future urban development.
{"title":"Tree shortages in informal settlements across African cities","authors":"Xihong Lian, Wei Liu, Zejin Liu, Limin Jiao, Charlie M. Shackleton, Bingjie Li, Jing Zhong, Rui Yang, Mengjing Fu, Haoran Zhang, Neema Simon Sumari, Yaolin Liu","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00284-0","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00284-0","url":null,"abstract":"Urban trees are crucial for enhancing the social and ecological qualities of urban environments, but their distribution and correlates in informal settlements across African cities remain unclear. Here we map out 53 million individual trees across 54 African cities and investigate their relationship with neighborhood environments along a gradient of urban informality. Our findings reveal the shortage of green infrastructure per capita in the most informal neighborhoods of African cities. Under the assumptions of continued urban expansion, 28 cities are projected to lose tree cover beyond current urban boundaries by 2050. This underscores the urgent need to upgrade informal settlements, although such efforts are often constrained by current socioeconomic conditions. Our study underscores the importance of fine-grained spatial data in informing tree retention strategies during urban upgrading and expansion and emphasizes that trees and green spaces must be recognized as integral components of sustainable urban development in Africa. This study maps individual trees across 54 African cities to examine the relationship between tree cover and urban informality. The findings highlight a shortage of green infrastructure in informal settlements and the need for data-driven strategies to integrate trees into future urban development.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 11","pages":"1049-1059"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145533792","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-08-01DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00290-2
Weilin Liao, Linying Wang, Xiaoping Liu, Duo Chan, Dan Li
Urban environments are usually hotter than their rural surroundings, a phenomenon known as the urban heat island (UHI) effect. The mean UHI effect implies that urban environments would experience more heat events if the same temperature threshold is used to identify heat events in both urban and rural environments. However, the role of higher-order temperature statistics, such as temperature variance and persistence, in determining urban–rural differences of heat event occurrence remains elusive. Here, using numerical simulations from two global models, we demonstrate that up to 94% of urban–rural differences in hot day occurrence are driven by the mean UHI effects normalized by temperature variance, that is, the standardized mean UHI effects. For multi-day heat events, temperature persistence further plays an important role. These findings reveal how the temperature mean, variance and persistence interact to determine the urban–rural difference in heat event occurrence. Cities with more pronounced standardized mean UHI effects and enhanced temperature persistence should place greater emphasis on mitigating the adverse impacts caused by extreme heat. Heat waves are increasing, and cities seem especially prone. Using global climate models, this study finds that cities with stronger standardized heat islands and more-persistent heat experience more heat waves.
{"title":"Standardized heat islands and persistence drive modeled urban heat events","authors":"Weilin Liao, Linying Wang, Xiaoping Liu, Duo Chan, Dan Li","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00290-2","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00290-2","url":null,"abstract":"Urban environments are usually hotter than their rural surroundings, a phenomenon known as the urban heat island (UHI) effect. The mean UHI effect implies that urban environments would experience more heat events if the same temperature threshold is used to identify heat events in both urban and rural environments. However, the role of higher-order temperature statistics, such as temperature variance and persistence, in determining urban–rural differences of heat event occurrence remains elusive. Here, using numerical simulations from two global models, we demonstrate that up to 94% of urban–rural differences in hot day occurrence are driven by the mean UHI effects normalized by temperature variance, that is, the standardized mean UHI effects. For multi-day heat events, temperature persistence further plays an important role. These findings reveal how the temperature mean, variance and persistence interact to determine the urban–rural difference in heat event occurrence. Cities with more pronounced standardized mean UHI effects and enhanced temperature persistence should place greater emphasis on mitigating the adverse impacts caused by extreme heat. Heat waves are increasing, and cities seem especially prone. Using global climate models, this study finds that cities with stronger standardized heat islands and more-persistent heat experience more heat waves.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 9","pages":"857-864"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145123472","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-07-30DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00286-y
Yingjie Li, Yuanyuan Mao, Lisa Mandle, Anders Rydström, Roy P. Remme, Xin Lan, Tong Wu, Chao Song, Yougeng Lu, Kari C. Nadeau, Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg, Gretchen C. Daily, Anne D. Guerry
Mental disorders are more prevalent in cities, yet the global impact of urban nature on mental health remains insufficiently understood. Here we address this gap by systematically reviewing 449 peer-reviewed studies and conducting a meta-analysis of 78 field-based experiments to quantify the effects of various urban nature types on 12 mental health outcomes. Our meta-analysis demonstrates that exposure to urban nature provides substantial benefits for a broad spectrum of mental health outcomes. Green spaces such as urban forests and parks emerged as key elements in mitigating negative moods, such as depression and anxiety, and enhancing overall mental well-being. In particular, the benefits of nature exposure are most pronounced among young adults, although consistent positive effects are evident across all age groups. These findings highlight the importance of safeguarding and expanding access to urban nature as a key strategy for enhancing public health and well-being in cities worldwide. A comprehensive understanding of how urban nature affects mental health at a global scale remains essential. This study addresses that need through a systematic review and meta-analysis, revealing the effects of exposure to various urban nature types on 12 distinct mental health outcomes.
{"title":"Acute mental health benefits of urban nature","authors":"Yingjie Li, Yuanyuan Mao, Lisa Mandle, Anders Rydström, Roy P. Remme, Xin Lan, Tong Wu, Chao Song, Yougeng Lu, Kari C. Nadeau, Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg, Gretchen C. Daily, Anne D. Guerry","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00286-y","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00286-y","url":null,"abstract":"Mental disorders are more prevalent in cities, yet the global impact of urban nature on mental health remains insufficiently understood. Here we address this gap by systematically reviewing 449 peer-reviewed studies and conducting a meta-analysis of 78 field-based experiments to quantify the effects of various urban nature types on 12 mental health outcomes. Our meta-analysis demonstrates that exposure to urban nature provides substantial benefits for a broad spectrum of mental health outcomes. Green spaces such as urban forests and parks emerged as key elements in mitigating negative moods, such as depression and anxiety, and enhancing overall mental well-being. In particular, the benefits of nature exposure are most pronounced among young adults, although consistent positive effects are evident across all age groups. These findings highlight the importance of safeguarding and expanding access to urban nature as a key strategy for enhancing public health and well-being in cities worldwide. A comprehensive understanding of how urban nature affects mental health at a global scale remains essential. This study addresses that need through a systematic review and meta-analysis, revealing the effects of exposure to various urban nature types on 12 distinct mental health outcomes.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 8","pages":"720-731"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145123407","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-07-30DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00297-9
John S. Ji
Nature enhances mental health, but it is unclear exactly what kind of urban green and blue spaces are needed. A global systematic analysis reveals that urban forests account for the largest proportion of improved mental well-being, especially among young adults.
{"title":"Urban nature and mental health","authors":"John S. Ji","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00297-9","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00297-9","url":null,"abstract":"Nature enhances mental health, but it is unclear exactly what kind of urban green and blue spaces are needed. A global systematic analysis reveals that urban forests account for the largest proportion of improved mental well-being, especially among young adults.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 8","pages":"683-684"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145123404","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-07-29DOI: 10.1038/s44284-025-00288-w
Pablo Moreno-García, Amy Savage, Ana L. Salgado, Elena S. Tartaglia, Jennifer M. Cocciardi, Myla F. J. Aronson, Marta A. Jarzyna, Marina Alberti, Daijiang Li
Cities are renowned for catalyzing human interactions, but their distinctive environments also affect the interactions of other species. We discuss how urbanization affects species interactions and identify key knowledge gaps. With this context and using an eco-evolutionary lens, we frame urban environments as providing three consecutive filters: the presence of species, their co-occurrence and their relationships. Our framework offers a structured model for studying and managing urban species and environments to facilitate conservation and ecosystem services, benefiting urbanites of all stripes. Cities are renowned for catalyzing human interactions, but their effects on urban species are less clear. This Perspective argues for such a focus, and proposes a framework for studying interactions between urban species.
{"title":"The effects of urbanization on species interactions","authors":"Pablo Moreno-García, Amy Savage, Ana L. Salgado, Elena S. Tartaglia, Jennifer M. Cocciardi, Myla F. J. Aronson, Marta A. Jarzyna, Marina Alberti, Daijiang Li","doi":"10.1038/s44284-025-00288-w","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44284-025-00288-w","url":null,"abstract":"Cities are renowned for catalyzing human interactions, but their distinctive environments also affect the interactions of other species. We discuss how urbanization affects species interactions and identify key knowledge gaps. With this context and using an eco-evolutionary lens, we frame urban environments as providing three consecutive filters: the presence of species, their co-occurrence and their relationships. Our framework offers a structured model for studying and managing urban species and environments to facilitate conservation and ecosystem services, benefiting urbanites of all stripes. Cities are renowned for catalyzing human interactions, but their effects on urban species are less clear. This Perspective argues for such a focus, and proposes a framework for studying interactions between urban species.","PeriodicalId":501700,"journal":{"name":"Nature Cities","volume":"2 8","pages":"693-702"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145123730","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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