Skip to main content

page search

Library Ecological homogenization of urban USA

Ecological homogenization of urban USA

Ecological homogenization of urban USA

Resource information

Date of publication
December 2014
Resource Language
ISBN / Resource ID
AGRIS:US201600194256
Pages
74-81

A visually apparent but scientifically untested outcome of land‐use change is homogenization across urban areas, where neighborhoods in different parts of the country have similar patterns of roads, residential lots, commercial areas, and aquatic features. We hypothesize that this homogenization extends to ecological structure and also to ecosystem functions such as carbon dynamics and microclimate, with continental‐scale implications. Further, we suggest that understanding urban homogenization will provide the basis for understanding the impacts of urban land‐use change from local to continental scales. Here, we show how multi‐scale, multi‐disciplinary datasets from six metropolitan areas that cover the major climatic regions of the US (Phoenix, AZ; Miami, FL; Baltimore, MD; Boston, MA; Minneapolis–St Paul, MN; and Los Angeles, CA) can be used to determine how household and neighborhood characteristics correlate with land‐management practices, land‐cover composition, and landscape structure and ecosystem functions at local, regional, and continental scales.

Share on RLBI navigator
NO

Authors and Publishers

Author(s), editor(s), contributor(s)

Groffman, Peter M
Jeannine Cavender-Bares
Neil D Bettez
J Morgan Grove
Sharon J Hall
James B Heffernan
Sarah E Hobbie
Kelli L Larson
Jennifer L Morse
Christopher Neill
Kristen Nelson
Jarlath O'Neil-Dunne
Laura Ogden
Diane E Pataki
Colin Polsky
Rinku Roy Chowdhury
Meredith K Steele

Data Provider
Geographical focus