Urban wildlife and biodiversity

UNRI scientists, working in conjunction with state and university partners, have begun to investigate the impacts of urbanization on wildlife habitats and the effects to bird, fish and animal populations. Researchers from the Northeastern Research Unit NE-4251, located in Amherst, MA and the Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES) Long-Term Ecological Research Program (LTER) are investigating biodiversity and forest habitat associations of wildlife within urbanized landscapes.

Much of the research is conducted in extensively managed forests and is designed to understand the effects of forest management on the distribution and ecology of forest vertebrates. Surveys of birds, small mammals and amphibians are conducted in various forest habitats to document species abundance and habitat use. Additionally, current research is underway to determine the relationship between forest patch origin, size class, and adjacent land use type on breeding bird species composition and abundance.

Please visit the Northeastern Research Unit NE-4251 or the Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES) Long-Term Ecological Research Program (LTER) websites , for information on the urban wildlife and diversity research that is currently being undertaken by the members of the UNRI research team and their cooperating partners.