An official website of the United States government
Abstract Urbanization can influence local richness (alpha diversity) and community composition (beta diversity) in numerous ways. For instance, reduced connectivity and land cover change may lead to the loss of native specialist taxa, decreasing alpha diversity. Alternatively, if urbanization facilitates nonnative species introductions and generalist taxa, alpha diversity may remain unchanged or increase, while beta diversity could decline due to the homogenization of community structure. Wetlands and ponds provide critical ecosystem services and support diverse communities, making them important systems in which to understand the consequences of urbanization. To determine how urban development shapes pond community structure, we surveyed 68 ponds around Madison, Wisconsin, USA, which were classified as urban, greenspace, or rural based on surrounding land use. We evaluated how landscape and local pond factors were correlated with the alpha diversity of aquatic plants, macroinvertebrates, and aquatic vertebrates. We also analyzed whether surrounding land use was associated with changes in community composition and the presence of specific taxa. We found a 23% decrease in mean richness (alpha diversity) from rural to urban pond sites and a 15% decrease from rural to greenspace pond sites. Among landscape factors, adjacent developed land, mowed lawn cover, and greater distances to other waterbodies were negatively correlated with observed pond richness. Among pond level factors, habitat complexity was associated with increased richness, while nonnative fishes were associated with decreased richness. Beta diversity was relatively high for all ponds due to turnover in composition between sites. Urban ponds supported more nonnative species, lacked a subset of native species found in rural ponds, and had slightly higher beta diversity than greenspace and rural ponds. Our results suggest that integrating ponds into connected greenspaces, maintaining riparian vegetation, preventing nonnative fish introductions, and promoting habitat complexity may mitigate the negative effects of urbanization on aquatic richness. While ponds are small in size and rarely incorporated into urban conservation planning, the high beta diversity of distinct pond communities emphasizes their importance for supporting urban biodiversity.
more »
« less
A Hawaiian Fishpond as an Educational Interdisciplinary Nexus
Loko iʻa, or traditional Hawaiian fishponds, backed by thousands of years of wisdom and knowledge of the kupuna (ancestors), were ecological treasures that thrived because of their harmonious connection with the surrounding land and water. Rather than imposing on the land, kupuna seek to understand the relationship between tidal flows from the ocean, the nutrients from the watershed, and the fish in the pond. As a result of this understanding, kupuna strategically choose locations for loko ʻia that amplify the abundance of the surrounding area. The end product is an expanse of the sustainable food production system from mauka (mountain) to makai (ocean). Sadly, most ancient fishponds have been destroyed or overrun by development. Various efforts are underway to restore the few that survive by integrating traditional knowledge and current technology. An example of this effort is done in a fishpond on Mokauea Island, off the south shore of Oʻahu. Once a small holding pen for young fish (kiʻo pua), the fishpond was enlarged in the early 1980s to the size of a football field. Recently, temperature, dissolved oxygen, water level, and flow rate sensors were deployed to understand basic physical characteristics of the pond. Mathematical models were adapted to analyze the observed data, and used to understand climate change effects. While the modeling and the computational aspects of this work is interesting, the emphasis of the work is on developing interdisciplinary projects and classroom materials drawn from real world applications. As an ecologically integrated food system, a fishpond is an excellent nexus for interdisciplinary projects. For example, the mathematical model for dissolved oxygen level necessitates the understanding, among others, the wind regime of the area, sediment oxygen demand, and surface and water oxygen saturation levels. At the heart of this work is preparing future generations by making a connection between ancient knowledge with current technology, data analysis, mathematical modeling. In this vein, an equitable relationship with the indigenous knowledge keeper and the land stakeholders is the key to the success of the project.
more »
« less
- Award ID(s):
- 1819953
- PAR ID:
- 10326646
- Editor(s):
- Nagib, Calaos; Ledesma, Elena F.
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Proceedings of the 25th World Multi-Conference on Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics (WMSCI 2021)
- Volume:
- II
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 148
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
1) Urbanization may lead to changes in local richness (alpha diversity) or in community composition (beta diversity), although the direction of change can be challenging to predict. For instance, introduced species may offset the loss of native specialist taxa, leading to no change in alpha diversity in urban areas, but decreased beta diversity (i.e., more homogenous community structure). Alternatively, because urban areas can have low connectivity and high environmental heterogeneity between sites, they may support distinct communities from one another over small geographic distances. 2) Wetlands and ponds provide critical ecosystem services and support diverse communities, making them important systems in which to understand consequences of urbanization. To determine how urban development shapes pond community structure, we surveyed 68 ponds around Madison, Wisconsin, USA, which were classified as urban, greenspace, or rural based on surrounding land use. We evaluated the influence of local abiotic factors, presence of nonnative fishes, and landscape characteristics on alpha diversity of aquatic plants, macroinvertebrates, and vertebrates. We also analyzed whether surrounding land cover was associated with changes in community composition and/or the presence of specific taxa. 3) We found a 23% decrease in mean richness (alpha diversity) from rural to urban pond sites, and a 15% decrease in richness from rural to urban greenspace pond sites. Among landscape factors, observed pond richness was negatively correlated with adjacent developed land and mowed lawns, as well as greater distances to other waterbodies. Among pond level factors, habitat complexity was associated with increased richness, while the presence of invasive fish was associated with decreased richness. 4) Beta diversity was relatively high for all ponds due to turnover in composition between sites. Urban ponds supported more introduced species, lacked a subset of native species found in rural ponds, and had slightly higher beta diversity than greenspace and rural ponds. 5) Synthesis and Applications: Integrating ponds into connected greenspaces comprised of native vegetation (rather than mowed grass), preventing nonnative fish introductions, and promoting habitat complexity may mitigate negative effects of urbanization on aquatic richness. The high beta diversity of distinct pond communities emphasizes their importance to biodiversity support in urban environments, despite being small in size and rarely incorporated into urban conservation planning.more » « less
-
1) Urbanization may lead to changes in local richness (alpha diversity) or in community composition (beta diversity), although the direction of change can be challenging to predict. For instance, introduced species may offset the loss of native specialist taxa, leading to no change in alpha diversity in urban areas, but decreased beta diversity (i.e., more homogenous community structure). Alternatively, because urban areas can have low connectivity and high environmental heterogeneity between sites, they may support distinct communities from one another over small geographic distances. 2) Wetlands and ponds provide critical ecosystem services and support diverse communities, making them important systems in which to understand consequences of urbanization. To determine how urban development shapes pond community structure, we surveyed 68 ponds around Madison, Wisconsin, USA, which were classified as urban, greenspace, or rural based on surrounding land use. We evaluated the influence of local abiotic factors, presence of nonnative fishes, and landscape characteristics on alpha diversity of aquatic plants, macroinvertebrates, and vertebrates. We also analyzed whether surrounding land cover was associated with changes in community composition and/or the presence of specific taxa. 3) We found a 23% decrease in mean richness (alpha diversity) from rural to urban pond sites, and a 15% decrease in richness from rural to urban greenspace pond sites. Among landscape factors, observed pond richness was negatively correlated with adjacent developed land and mowed lawns, as well as greater distances to other waterbodies. Among pond level factors, habitat complexity was associated with increased richness, while the presence of invasive fish was associated with decreased richness. 4) Beta diversity was relatively high for all ponds due to turnover in composition between sites. Urban ponds supported more introduced species, lacked a subset of native species found in rural ponds, and had slightly higher beta diversity than greenspace and rural ponds. 5) Synthesis and Applications: Integrating ponds into connected greenspaces comprised of native vegetation (rather than mowed grass), preventing nonnative fish introductions, and promoting habitat complexity may mitigate negative effects of urbanization on aquatic richness. The high beta diversity of distinct pond communities emphasizes their importance to biodiversity support in urban environments, despite being small in size and rarely incorporated into urban conservation planning.more » « less
-
null (Ed.)This paper describes an innovative graduate course in agricultural economics that has evolved over the past decade and attracts students from across the Purdue University campus. Its novel combination of guest lectures on key sustainability topics, and intensive, computer-based lab assignments with the SIMPLE model of global food and environmental security, prepares students to undertake innovative projects. These independent projects are presented to the class, written up, and submitted in lieu of a final exam. The topics covered are quite diverse and range from the impacts of women empowerment on food security, to the consequences of heat stress on farm workers, and the impact of reducing food waste. The course has spawned two dozen published journal articles, inspired MS and PhD theses, and facilitated a number of important interdisciplinary projects. The complete syllabus, lab assignments, and detailed course design are made available for others to use and adapt to their own circumstances. Future versions of the course will seek to incorporate explicitly spatial analysis of agriculture, land, water, and environmental quality outcomes.more » « less
-
Lane College is a small, liberal arts, Historically Black College in Jackson, TN. The Division of Natural and Physical Sciences provides undergraduate research experiences for students majoring in biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, or physics. To increase inclusivity, all students within one of the five majors are encouraged to apply, regardless of GPA, classification, or previous research experience. This eight-week program features a bi-weekly professional development session and a symposium at the end of the program where students present their research findings. During the summer of 2023, seven biology students completed a metagenomics research study with the goal to explore the biodiversity of different local freshwater aquatic environments. The students collected water samples from four local ponds with metadata such as pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and GPS coordinates. Initial observations of aquatic life using microscopy and dichotomous keys were made. The DNA was extracted from the samples using ethanol precipitation followed by clean-up with the ZymoBIOMICS DNA Miniprep kit. DNA was amplified using the Nanopore Rapid PCR barcoding kit or the 16S PCR barcoding kit and sequenced with the Nanopore MinION Mk1C. DNA sequences were initially analyzed using the Nanopore Minnow and Epi2Me What's in My Pot Workflows. Each student explored the subsequent data to answer specific research questions about the biodiversity in each environment, such as the impact of pH, dissolved oxygen, whether the pond was static or free flowing, or the presence of different pathogenic or toxic microbes. Overall, they found that while there was some overlap, aquatic organisms varied in the ponds depending on whether the pond was static or free flowing, pH, dissolved oxygen, and location. Some of the students continued these research projects during the fall 2023 semester in the Biology Undergraduate Research course where they refined their research questions and analyzed the data using additional bioinformatics tools available on Galaxy.more » « less
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Conference Paper:
- The DOI is not currently available.
