Large trees are keystone structures in urban parks

By Karen Stagoll, David B. Lindenmayer, Emma J. Knight, J. Fischer, A. Manning. 2012

270 citations recorded by the source corpus.

Large trees are considered keystone structures in agricultural and forestry production landscapes, but research demonstrating this in urban landscapes is urgently needed. If large trees are keystone structures in urban parks, it is imperative that this is recognized in policy to ensure their ongoing existence. We studied the role of large native trees for birds in urban parks in Canberra, Australia. We found that (1) large trees had a consistent, strong, and positive relationship with five measures of bird diversity, and (2) as trees became larger in size, their positive effect on bird diversity increased. Large urban trees are therefore keystone structures that provide crucial habitat resources for wildlife. Hence, it is vital that they are managed appropriately. With evidence‐based tree preservation policies that recognize biodiversity values, and proactive planning for future large trees, the protection and perpetuation of these important keystone structures can be achieved.

Subfields: Global and Planetary Change, Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis, Nature and Landscape Conservation

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/b04c4188466550c2a2c073fedbdfc1cc6ff46097

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In Global and Planetary Change

In Nature and Landscape Conservation

Citations in the corpus

European ash (Fraxinus excelsior) dieback - a conservation biology challenge. (2013, background): “Particularly threatening from a biodiversity conservation point of view is the loss of ancient ash trees (Denzler, 1998; Pautasso and Chiarucci, 2008; Rackham, 2008; Lindbladh and Foster, 2010; Stagoll et al., 2012), but also young F.”
Urban heat island impacts on plant phenology: intra-urban variability and response to land cover (2016, background): “…response to theUHI in parksmay be particularly beneficial for native and migratory species which rely on vegetation phenological events for survival (e.g. budburst), as urban parks are often viewed as refugia for species threatened by the urbanization process (Dobrowski 2011, Stagoll et al 2012).”
Urban trees: bridge-heads for forest pest invasions and sentinels for early detection (2017, unknown): “Urban forests can contain relatively high levels of diversity and they are amongst the main suppliers of ecosystem services in urban areas (Alvey 2006; Dobbs et al. 2011, 2014; Stagoll et al. 2012).”