Plant Biodiversity in Urbanized Areas : Plant Functional Traits in Space and Time, Plant Rarity and Phylogenetic Diversity

Urbanization is one of the main drivers of global change. It often takes place in areas with high biodiversity, threatening species worldwide. To protect biodiversity not only outside but also right within urban areas, knowledge about the effects of urban land use on species assemblages is essential. Sonja Knapp compares several aspects of plant biodiversity between urban and rural areas in Germany. Using extensive databases and modern statistical methods, she goes beyond species richness: Urban areas are rich in species but plant species in urban areas are closer related to each other than plant species in rural areas, respectively. The urban environment, characterized by high temperatures and frequent disturbances, changes the functional composition of the flora. It promotes e.g. short-lived species with leaves adapted to drought but threatens insect-pollinated or wind-dispersed species. The author claims that the protection of biodiversity should not only focus on species richness but also on functional and phylogenetic diversity, also right within urban areas, to preserve a flora with a high potential for adaptation to changing global conditions. Urban areas are increasing more and more and human's first contact to nature will take place in cities. More than 50% of the world's human population is concentrated in urban areas; this number is even higher in Central Europe. These are the main reasons for the increasing number of studies on urban ecology - cluding urban flora and vegetation. One surprising outcome of these studies was the higher species richness in urban areas in comparison to the open cultural landscape in Central Europe. This stable pattern has been found within several studies on several cities since the 70s of the last century. The main tasks of the dissertation of Sonja Knapp can be summarised in the following questions: What are the main causes for higher species richness and what processes govern this pattern? Is species richness linked with ecological traits and is species richness in urban areas linked with phylogenetic diversity? Sonja Knapp's dissertation “Plant Biodiversity in Urbanized Areas – Ana- ses of Plant Functional Traits in Space and Time, Plant Rarity and Phylogenetic Diversity” presents new insights into biodiversity processes in urban areas. Front Matter....Pages I-XXX General Introduction....Pages 1-11 Urbanization Causes Shifts of Species’ Trait State Frequencies – a Large Scale Analysis....Pages 13-29 Does Urbanization Cause Shifts of Species’ Trait State Frequencies? – A Small Scale Analysis....Pages 31-42 How Species Traits and Affinity to Urban Land Use Control Plant Species Frequency....Pages 43-65 Changes in the Functional Composition of a Central European Urban Flora over Three Centuries....Pages 67-88 Challenging Urban Species Diversity: Contrasting Phylogenetic Patterns across Plant Functional Groups in Germany....Pages 89-105 Back Matter....Pages 107-150