city takes the initiative to protect wildlife, one of the first things to do is to make an
inventory of all species within its boundaries, and perhaps in a network with other
cities within the ecoregion in which the city is situated.
In 1990, Brooklyn Botanic Garden acknowledged the importance of local flora
and founded the New York Metropolitan Flora project (Moore et al. 2004). This area
lies for the major part in the ecoregion ‘Northeast US Coastal forest’ of the Nearctic
realm. The project’s purpose was to document all vascular plants that grow without
cultivation in the metropolitan area. The next step is to determine which species are
endemic to the ecoregion, which are native, non-native, and which are invasive. A
further step is to apply the acquired knowledge to the development of green places in
the city.
In Tokyo, largely situated in the ecoregion ‘Taiheiyo evergreen forests’ of the
Palearctic realm, native species are used for planting in parks. The city learned from
the experience with a previous project, that when developers are required to provide
greenery in urban areas, they for reasons of maintenance and pest control tended to
select cultivars and invasive alien species. As a result, some cultivars or invasive
species spread their habitats and seriously impacted on the habitats for native
species. Now the city promotes an increase in the quality of small green spaces,
and making networks of habitats for indigenous wild life settings. These are major
goals for a new guideline: greening for biodiversity conservation and networking for
indigenous wild life (Bureau of Environment 2014).
In Beijing, largely situated in the ecoregion ‘Central China Loess Plateau mixed
forests’ of the Palearctic realm, scientists conducted butterfly sampling and questionnaire surveys in ten parks (Sing et al. 2019). The questionnaire aimed to explore
park users’ perceptions of butterfly diversity in urban parks and the relationship with
human well-being. The total species count of this study was similar to studies from
other megacities in the Sino-Japanese and East Palaearctic zoogeographic region,
but the lack of an intrinsic ecological concept in the design of most parks may
contribute to the relatively low butterfly species richness in urban parks. It was the
first butterfly data collected for Beijing urban landscapes, and it highlights the
importance and need for long-term butterfly monitoring.
Seattle, largely situated in the ecoregion ‘Puget lowland forests’ in the Nearctic
realm, was the first U.S. city to adopt a green area ratio, known as the Green Factor.
This is a score-based code requirement that increases the amount and improves the
quality of landscaping in new development through the provision of green roofs, rain
gardens, vegetated walls etc. It aims to manage storm water runoff, aesthetically
enhance neighbourhoods, and improve habitat for birds and beneficial insects (City
of Seattle 2015). The city promotes the use of native plants (but also non-native) that
are adapted to the region (City of Seattle 2019).
In São Paulo, largely situated in the ecoregion ‘Serra do Mar coastal forests’ in the
Neotropical realm, the number municipal parks doubled between 2005 and 2010. In
terms of area, the growth was from 15 million to 24 million square meters (MelloThéry 2011). Vegetation has been used as an index for assessing the quality of life,
the characterization of the landscape of streets, squares and parks. The municipal
Green Areas policy treats vegetation as an integrating element in the urban
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J. Jansen and C. Hobohm
inventory of all species within its boundaries, and perhaps in a network with other
cities within the ecoregion in which the city is situated.
In 1990, Brooklyn Botanic Garden acknowledged the importance of local flora
and founded the New York Metropolitan Flora project (Moore et al. 2004). This area
lies for the major part in the ecoregion ‘Northeast US Coastal forest’ of the Nearctic
realm. The project’s purpose was to document all vascular plants that grow without
cultivation in the metropolitan area. The next step is to determine which species are
endemic to the ecoregion, which are native, non-native, and which are invasive. A
further step is to apply the acquired knowledge to the development of green places in
the city.
In Tokyo, largely situated in the ecoregion ‘Taiheiyo evergreen forests’ of the
Palearctic realm, native species are used for planting in parks. The city learned from
the experience with a previous project, that when developers are required to provide
greenery in urban areas, they for reasons of maintenance and pest control tended to
select cultivars and invasive alien species. As a result, some cultivars or invasive
species spread their habitats and seriously impacted on the habitats for native
species. Now the city promotes an increase in the quality of small green spaces,
and making networks of habitats for indigenous wild life settings. These are major
goals for a new guideline: greening for biodiversity conservation and networking for
indigenous wild life (Bureau of Environment 2014).
In Beijing, largely situated in the ecoregion ‘Central China Loess Plateau mixed
forests’ of the Palearctic realm, scientists conducted butterfly sampling and questionnaire surveys in ten parks (Sing et al. 2019). The questionnaire aimed to explore
park users’ perceptions of butterfly diversity in urban parks and the relationship with
human well-being. The total species count of this study was similar to studies from
other megacities in the Sino-Japanese and East Palaearctic zoogeographic region,
but the lack of an intrinsic ecological concept in the design of most parks may
contribute to the relatively low butterfly species richness in urban parks. It was the
first butterfly data collected for Beijing urban landscapes, and it highlights the
importance and need for long-term butterfly monitoring.
Seattle, largely situated in the ecoregion ‘Puget lowland forests’ in the Nearctic
realm, was the first U.S. city to adopt a green area ratio, known as the Green Factor.
This is a score-based code requirement that increases the amount and improves the
quality of landscaping in new development through the provision of green roofs, rain
gardens, vegetated walls etc. It aims to manage storm water runoff, aesthetically
enhance neighbourhoods, and improve habitat for birds and beneficial insects (City
of Seattle 2015). The city promotes the use of native plants (but also non-native) that
are adapted to the region (City of Seattle 2019).
In São Paulo, largely situated in the ecoregion ‘Serra do Mar coastal forests’ in the
Neotropical realm, the number municipal parks doubled between 2005 and 2010. In
terms of area, the growth was from 15 million to 24 million square meters (MelloThéry 2011). Vegetation has been used as an index for assessing the quality of life,
the characterization of the landscape of streets, squares and parks. The municipal
Green Areas policy treats vegetation as an integrating element in the urban
438
J. Jansen and C. Hobohm