Departamento de Medio Ambiente y Ecosistemas, Facultad de Agronomia e Ingenieria Forestal, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Vicuna Mackenna 4860, Macul, Santiago, Chile.
School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia.
Sci Total Environ. 2017 Aug 15;592:171-177. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.03.058. Epub 2017 Mar 17.
Vegetation is one of the main resources involve in ecosystem functioning and providing ecosystem services in urban areas. Little is known on the landscape structure patterns of vegetation existing in urban areas at the global scale and the drivers of these patterns. We studied the landscape structure of one hundred cities around the globe, and their relation to demography (population), socioeconomic factors (GDP, Gini Index), climate factors (temperature and rain) and topographic characteristics (altitude, variation in altitude). The data revealed that the best descriptors of landscape structure were amount, fragmentation and spatial distribution of vegetation. Populated cities tend to have less, more fragmented, less connected vegetation with a centre of the city with low vegetation cover. Results also provided insights on the influence of socioeconomics at a global scale, as landscape structure was more fragmented in areas that are economically unequal and coming from emergent economies. This study shows the effects of the social system and climate on urban landscape patterns that gives useful insights for the distribution in the provision of ecosystem services in urban areas and therefore the maintenance of human well-being. This information can support local and global policy and planning which is committing our cities to provide accessible and inclusive green space for all urban inhabitants.
植被是城市生态系统功能和提供生态系统服务的主要资源之一。目前在全球范围内，人们对城市植被的景观结构模式及其驱动因素知之甚少。我们研究了全球范围内一百个城市的景观结构，以及它们与人口统计学（人口）、社会经济因素（国内生产总值、基尼指数）、气候因素（温度和降雨）和地形特征（海拔、海拔变化）的关系。数据显示，植被的景观结构最好的描述符是数量、破碎化和空间分布。人口较多的城市往往拥有更少、更碎片化、连接性更差的植被，城市中心的植被覆盖率也较低。研究结果还深入了解了全球范围内社会经济的影响，因为在经济不平等和新兴经济体中，景观结构更为破碎。这项研究表明了社会制度和气候对城市景观格局的影响，为城市生态系统服务的分布提供了有用的见解，从而维护了人类福祉。这些信息可以支持地方和全球政策和规划，使我们的城市致力于为所有城市居民提供可达和包容的绿色空间。
