landscape. This, incorporates significant surfaces into the Green Areas System of the
municipality, expands tree planting in streets, creates tracks connecting squares,
parks or green areas, and aims to recover degraded areas of landscape and environmental importance. It is intended also to give people a contemplative recreational
contact with nature (Furlan 2004). In cooperation with several universities, current
research is conducted in the project ‘One Health and Urban Transformation’.
The city of Cape Town is unique in terms of its high biodiversity, which includes
a large diversity of endemic and endangered vegetation types and species, which
should be conserved (Holmes et al. 2012). The Cape Floristic Region is well known
for its outstanding biodiversity and is recognized as a global biodiversity hotspot
(Mittermeier et al. 2011). The region has a long history of conservation. The first
reserve, an indigenous forest near Plettenberg Bay east of Cape Town, was officially
proclaimed in 1811, one of the first in the world (Grove 1987). Cape Town is largely
situated in the ecoregion ‘Fynbos shrubland’ of the Afrotropic realm. One of the
conclusions of a literature study on Cape Town’s ecology was that scientists laid
sound foundations for the next phase of urban ecology: not only interdisciplinary,
but also transdisciplinary (Cilliers and Siebert 2012). Another conclusion was that
there was a focus on the entire urban green infrastructure (including private and
public open spaces as well as man-made habitats), integration of different academic
disciplines (and non-academic contributions). The ecology in cities locally and
globally had been compared, ecological patterns and the processes (biological,
physical and socio-economical) driving them had been studied, as well as the
mechanisms behind the processes.
Wellington (New Zealand) belongs to the Australian realm and ecoregion
‘New Zealand North Island temperate forests’. Rastandeh et al. (2018) investigated
how the most suitable patches of vegetation in urban landscapes can be identified,
ranked, and prioritised as potential urban wildlife sanctuaries. One of those potential
areas was the Wellington Botanic Garden (ca. 25 ha). This includes protected native
forest, also a variety of non-native species in an extensive Rose Garden.
7 Limits of Nature Conservation Measures in Cities
The two most important taxonomic groups which are represented in botanical
gardens, aquariums and zoos are vascular plants and vertebrates. Members of most
other groups are not included in any institution in the world. Millions of insect
species that are living in tropical rainforests are neither identified and described by
science nor represented in zoos. For example it is almost impossible to show living
animal species of the deep sea in zoos or cultivated lichens in botanical gardens.
And even for vascular plants in botanical gardens and vertebrate species in zoos,
the representation is incomplete and highly biased. Globally, some plant families are
represented 100%, e.g. cacti and Didieraceae, whereas only 25% of the orchid
species, and less than 10% of the Asteraceae are cultivated (Bundesamt für
Naturschutz 1999).
Urban Habitats: Cities and Their Potential for Nature Protection
439
municipality, expands tree planting in streets, creates tracks connecting squares,
parks or green areas, and aims to recover degraded areas of landscape and environmental importance. It is intended also to give people a contemplative recreational
contact with nature (Furlan 2004). In cooperation with several universities, current
research is conducted in the project ‘One Health and Urban Transformation’.
The city of Cape Town is unique in terms of its high biodiversity, which includes
a large diversity of endemic and endangered vegetation types and species, which
should be conserved (Holmes et al. 2012). The Cape Floristic Region is well known
for its outstanding biodiversity and is recognized as a global biodiversity hotspot
(Mittermeier et al. 2011). The region has a long history of conservation. The first
reserve, an indigenous forest near Plettenberg Bay east of Cape Town, was officially
proclaimed in 1811, one of the first in the world (Grove 1987). Cape Town is largely
situated in the ecoregion ‘Fynbos shrubland’ of the Afrotropic realm. One of the
conclusions of a literature study on Cape Town’s ecology was that scientists laid
sound foundations for the next phase of urban ecology: not only interdisciplinary,
but also transdisciplinary (Cilliers and Siebert 2012). Another conclusion was that
there was a focus on the entire urban green infrastructure (including private and
public open spaces as well as man-made habitats), integration of different academic
disciplines (and non-academic contributions). The ecology in cities locally and
globally had been compared, ecological patterns and the processes (biological,
physical and socio-economical) driving them had been studied, as well as the
mechanisms behind the processes.
Wellington (New Zealand) belongs to the Australian realm and ecoregion
‘New Zealand North Island temperate forests’. Rastandeh et al. (2018) investigated
how the most suitable patches of vegetation in urban landscapes can be identified,
ranked, and prioritised as potential urban wildlife sanctuaries. One of those potential
areas was the Wellington Botanic Garden (ca. 25 ha). This includes protected native
forest, also a variety of non-native species in an extensive Rose Garden.
7 Limits of Nature Conservation Measures in Cities
The two most important taxonomic groups which are represented in botanical
gardens, aquariums and zoos are vascular plants and vertebrates. Members of most
other groups are not included in any institution in the world. Millions of insect
species that are living in tropical rainforests are neither identified and described by
science nor represented in zoos. For example it is almost impossible to show living
animal species of the deep sea in zoos or cultivated lichens in botanical gardens.
And even for vascular plants in botanical gardens and vertebrate species in zoos,
the representation is incomplete and highly biased. Globally, some plant families are
represented 100%, e.g. cacti and Didieraceae, whereas only 25% of the orchid
species, and less than 10% of the Asteraceae are cultivated (Bundesamt für
Naturschutz 1999).
Urban Habitats: Cities and Their Potential for Nature Protection
439