scholarly journals Lower bumblebee colony reproductive success in agricultural compared with urban environments

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1881) ◽  
pp. 20180807 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ash E. Samuelson ◽  
Richard J. Gill ◽  
Mark J. F. Brown ◽  
Ellouise Leadbeater

Urbanization represents a rapidly growing driver of land-use change. While it is clear that urbanization impacts species abundance and diversity, direct effects of urban land use on animal reproductive success are rarely documented. Here, we show that urban land use is linked to long-term colony reproductive output in a key pollinator. We reared colonies from wild-caught bumblebee ( Bombus terrestris ) queens, placed them at sites characterized by varying degrees of urbanization from inner city to rural farmland and monitored the production of sexual offspring across the entire colony cycle . Our land-use cluster analysis identified three site categories, and this categorization was a strong predictor of colony performance. Crucially, colonies in the two clusters characterized by urban development produced more sexual offspring than those in the cluster dominated by agricultural land. These colonies also reached higher peak size, had more food stores, encountered fewer parasite invasions and survived for longer. Our results show a link between urbanization and bumblebee colony reproductive success, supporting the theory that urban areas provide a refuge for pollinator populations in an otherwise barren agricultural landscape.

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 273 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jude Ndzifon Kimengsi ◽  
Balgah Sounders Nguh ◽  
Achia Soulange Nafoin

<em></em><em><em> </em><em>A consequence of rapid and uncontrolled urbanization is the growth of the peri-urban environment. Peri-urban areas the world over are undergoing rapid changes in their land uses with significant development implications. In the present study, Bamenda III, a municipality of Cameroon, which forms part of the Bamenda Metropolis—a primate city par excellence, witnessed dramatic changes in its peri-urban zone. Such changes are exemplified by the multiplication of land uses, a reduction in<br />agricultural land in favour of settlements and other infrastructural developments as well as wetland invasion. Using a systematic sampling of 100 inhabitants in the Bamenda III peri-urban zone, complemented by interviews and secondary data sources, we sought to investigate the evolution, drivers and development implications of peri-urban land use dynamics. The results showed that during the year 2000-2015, there was a reduction in agricultural land area from 2943ha to 1389ha and a corresponding increase in the area for settlements from 1389ha to 2943ha. A positive correlation was observed between population growth and peri-urban land use dynamics in Bamenda III. The observed<br />dynamics has significant developmental implications in terms of future planning perspectives, future developments at the expense of agricultural land and further encroachments into wetlands. The study<br />concludes that a coordinated and planned growth policy should be introduced in order to control rapid peri-urban land use change in the face of population growth.</em></em>


2019 ◽  
Vol 110 ◽  
pp. 02001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boris Bondarev ◽  
Sergey Nosov ◽  
Oleg Antipov ◽  
Lusine Papikian

Agricultural and forest lands near settlements are main reserve for expansion of urban areas. Thus, among 148.5 thousand hectares of lands added to Moscow city territory in 2012, 72.2 thousand hectares or 48% were occupied by agricultural and forest lands. Urban areas are characterized by excessively high intensity of land use, land depletion, deterioration in environmental quality and decline in sustainability of urban development. The paper presents the results of analysis of urban land use planning system in the interests of sustainable development of urban territories. The object of the study is the land that is part of Moscow, which is planned to be developed in the coming decades. The authors propose an algorithm for urban development of such areas, which takes into account the quality of land. Design calculations for areas under development were carried out for Shchapovskoye settlement in New Moscow as an example. In addition, the paper covers aspects of land management when developing agricultural land within cities. The authors developed a classification of agricultural land according to a criterion of “suitability for urban development”. The suggested classification has been applied to achieve the objectives of planning urban land use development, determining the order of construction on agricultural lands within the system of sustainable urban development management.


2013 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad Nazri Muhamad Ludin ◽  
Norsiah Abd. Aziz ◽  
Nooraini Hj Yusoff ◽  
Wan Juliyana Wan Abd Razak

Land use planning plays a crucial role in creating a balance between the needs of society, physical development and the ecosystem. However, most often poor planning and displacement of land uses particularly in urban areas contribute to social ills such as drug abuse and criminal activities. This research explains the spatial relationship of drug abuse and other criminal activities on urban land use planning and their implications on the society at large. Spatial statistics was used to show patterns, trends and spatial relationships of crimes and land use planning. Data on crime incidents were obtained from the Royal Malaysia Police Department whilst cases of drug abuse were collected from the National Anti-Drug Agency (AADK). Analysis of the data together with digital land use maps produced by Arnpang Jaya Municipal Council, showed the distribution of crime incidents and drug abuse in the area. Findings of the study also indicated that, there was a strong relationship between petty crimes, drng abuse and land use patterns. These criminal activities tend to concentrate in residential and commercial areas of the study area.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel T. L. Myers ◽  
Richard R. Rediske ◽  
James N. McNair ◽  
Aaron D. Parker ◽  
E. Wendy Ogilvie

Abstract Background Urban areas are often built along large rivers and surrounded by agricultural land. This may lead to small tributary streams that have agricultural headwaters and urbanized lower reaches. Our study objectives assessed are as follows: (1) landscape, geomorphic, and water quality variables that best explained variation in aquatic communities and their integrity in a stream system following this agricultural-to-urban land use gradient; (2) ways this land use gradient caused aquatic communities to differ from what would be expected for an idealized natural stream or other longitudinal gradients; and (3) whether the impacts of this land use gradient on aquatic communities would grow larger in a downstream direction through the agricultural and urban developments. Our study area was an impaired coldwater stream in Michigan, USA. Results Many factors structured the biological communities along the agricultural-to-urban land use gradient. Instream woody debris had the strongest relationship with EPT (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera) abundance and richness and were most common in the lower, urbanized watershed. Fine streambed substrate had the strongest relationship with Diptera taxa and surface air breather macroinvertebrates and was dominant in agricultural headwaters. Fish community assemblage was influenced largely by stream flow and temperature regimes, while poor fish community integrity in lower urban reaches could be impacted by geomorphology and episodic urban pollution events. Scraping macroinvertebrates were most abundant in deforested, first-order agricultural headwaters, while EPT macroinvertebrate richness was the highest downstream of agricultural areas within the urban zone that had extensive forest buffers. Conclusion Environmental variables and aquatic communities would often not conform with what we would expect from an idealized natural stream. EPT richness improved downstream of agricultural areas. This shows promise for the recovery of aquatic systems using well-planned management in watersheds with this agricultural-to-urban land use pattern. Small patches of forest can be the key to conserving aquatic biodiversity in urbanized landscapes. These findings are valuable to an international audience of researchers and water resource managers who study stream systems following this common agricultural-to-urban land use gradient, the ecological communities of which may not conform with what is generally known about land use impacts to streams.


Urban Science ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nimi Dan-Jumbo ◽  
Marc Metzger ◽  
Andrew Clark

Cities in developing countries are urbanising at a rapid rate, resulting in substantial pressures on environmental systems. Among the main factors that lead to flooding, controlling land-use change offers the greatest scope for the management of risk. However, traditional analysis of a “from–to” change matrix is not adequate to provide information of all the land-use changes that occur in a watershed. In this study, an in-depth analysis of land-use change enabled us to quantify the bulk of the changes accumulating from swap changes in a tropical watershed. This study assessed the historical and future land-use/land-cover (LULC) dynamics in the River State region of the Niger Delta. Land-use classification and change detection analysis was conducted using multi-source (Landsat TM, ETM, polygon map, and hard copy) data of the study area for 1986, 1995, and 2003, and projected conditions in 2060. The key findings indicate that historical urbanisation was rapid; urban expansion could increase by 80% in 2060 due to planned urban development; and 95% of the conversions to urban land occurred chiefly at the expense of agricultural land. Urban land was dominated by net changes rather than swap changes, which in the future could amplify flood risk and have other severe implications for the watershed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 2964 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chia-An Ku

The deterioration of air quality in urban areas is often closely related to urbanization, as this has led to a significant increase in energy consumption and the massive emission of air pollutants, thereby exacerbating the current state of air pollution. However, the relationship between urban development and air quality is complex, thus making it difficult to be analyzed using traditional methods. In this paper, a framework integrating spatial analysis and statistical methods (based on 170 regression models) is developed to explore the spatial and temporal relationship between urban land use patterns and air quality, aiming to provide solid information for mitigation planning. The thresholds for the influence of urban patterns are examined using different buffer zones. In addition, the differences in the effects of various types of land use pattern on air quality were also explored. The results show that there were significant differences between 1999 and 2013 with regards to the correlations between land use patterns and air pollutant concentrations. Among all land uses, forest, water and built-up areas were proved to influence concentrations the most. It is suggested that the developed framework should be applied further in the real-world mitigation planning decision-making process


Atmosphere ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Sun ◽  
Zhihong Liu ◽  
Yang Zhang ◽  
Weixin Xu ◽  
Xiaotong Lv ◽  
...  

The expansion of urban areas and the increase in the number of buildings and urbanization characteristics, such as roads, affect the meteorological environment in urban areas, resulting in weakened pollutant dispersion. First, this paper uses GIS (geographic information system) spatial analysis technology and landscape ecology analysis methods to analyze the dynamic changes in land cover and landscape patterns in Chengdu as a result of urban development. Second, the most appropriate WRF (Weather Research and Forecasting) model parameterization scheme is selected and screened. Land-use data from different development stages in the city are included in the model, and the wind speed and temperature results simulated using new and old land-use data (1980 and 2015) are evaluated and compared. Finally, the results of the numerical simulations by the WRF-Chem air quality model using new and old land-use data are coupled with 0.25° × 0.25°-resolution MEIC (Multi-resolution Emission Inventory for China) emission source data from Tsinghua University. The results of the sensitivity experiments using the WRF-Chem model for the city under different development conditions and during different periods are discussed. The meteorological conditions and pollution sources remained unchanged as the land-use data changed, which revealed the impact of urban land-use changes on the simulation results of PM2.5 atmospheric pollutants. The results show the following. (1) From 1980 to 2015, the land-use changes in Chengdu were obvious, and cultivated land exhibited the greatest changes, followed by forestland. Under the influence of urban land-use dynamics and human activities, both the richness and evenness of the landscape in Chengdu increased. (2) The microphysical scheme WSM3 (WRF Single–Moment 3 class) and land-surface scheme SLAB (5-layer diffusion scheme) were the most suitable for simulating temperatures and wind speeds in the WRF model. The wind speed and temperature simulation results using the 2015 land-use data were better than those using the 1980 land-use data when assessed according to the coincidence index and correlation coefficient. (3) The WRF-Chem simulation results obtained for PM2.5 using the 2015 land-use data were better than those obtained using the 1980 land-use data in terms of the correlation coefficient and standard deviation. The concentration of PM2.5 in urban areas was higher than that in the suburbs, and the concentration of PM2.5 was lower on Longquan Mountain in Chengdu than in the surrounding areas.


2013 ◽  
Vol 726-731 ◽  
pp. 4645-4649
Author(s):  
Jia Hua Zhang ◽  
Cui Hao ◽  
Feng Mei Yao

We developed an approach to assess urban land use changes that incorporates socio-economic and environmental factors with multinomial logistic model, remote sensing data and GIS, and to quantify the impact of macro variables on land use of urban areas for the years 1990, 2000 and 2010 in Binhai New Area, China. The Markov transition matrix was designed to integrate with multinomial logistic model to illustrate and visualize the predicted land use surface. The multinomial logistic model was evaluated by means of Likelihood ratio test and Pseudo R-Square and showed a relatively good simulation. The prediction map of 2010 showed accurate rates 78.54%, 57.25% and 70.38%, respectively.


2015 ◽  
Vol 03 (03) ◽  
pp. 1550026 ◽  
Author(s):  
Divine Odame APPIAH ◽  
Eric Kwabena FORKUO ◽  
John Tiah BUGRI

This paper is a critical review, which synthesizes the theory-application linkage of peri-urban land use and land cover changes (LULCC) using the Bosomtwe District in the Ashanti Region of Ghana as the case. From abstractive thinking to empirical possibility, we conjecture human decisions within agent-based modeling (ABM) perspective. The key question the paper has tried to answer is: what are the probable future land use conversion and modification potentials in the district? LULCC in peri-urban areas respond to social and biophysical dynamics. These control spatial distribution of populations, infrastructure, and the space economy. Under systemic laxity of controls, peri-urban land uses deviate from effective land use plans.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 84-107
Author(s):  
Bismark Mensah ◽  
Isaac Obeng Darkwa ◽  
Esther Yamoaba Bonful ◽  
Moses Bangfunourteru Tuu ◽  
Mohammed Sanda ◽  
...  

Ghana is rapidly urbanizing. This urbanization has resulted in villages growing into towns and towns into urbanized areas. Theories and models have been employed to explain the internal structure of urban areas, especially, with respect to land use variations. These models started with the classical urban land use models in America. Urban scholars in Africa have struggled to fit the development of the African cities into these classical models. They have therefore called for African scholars to develop models for urban land use in Africa. This paper sought to identify the common patterns of land use activities which shape the internal structure of Ghana’s secondary cities. The study employed Geographic Information System (GIS) as a major tool of analysis in explaining the patterns in urban areas. This is augmented with in-depth ground observations of the study areas. The findings of the study showed the absence of homogeneity in most of the sectors and undefined industrial zones as contradictions to the classical models. The study further revealed that residential zones were not fully occupied by either lower income, middle income, or higher income residence. The income groups may only dominate in a given sector. Based on the findings, a common pattern is proposed to represent the land uses within the selected secondary cities in Ghana.


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