Term of Award

Spring 2024

Degree Name

Master of Science in Biology (M.S.)

Document Type and Release Option

Thesis (open access)

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Department

Department of Biology

Committee Chair

Michelle Cawthorn

Committee Member 1

Michele Guidone

Committee Member 2

Alan Harvey

Abstract

Large-scale urbanization is one of the leading causes of biodiversity loss on a global scale due to habitat loss and fragmentation. This has created a need to investigate ways to mitigate the damage caused by urban development, such as studying whether green spaces in urban areas can serve as means of preserving mammalian biodiversity in cities. This study specifically focused on greenways as they are understudied when compared to other green spaces, such as parks and cemeteries. Greenways are linear tracts of paved land, usually designed for human recreational activities. However, their benefits to wildlife have not been well researched. Given a lack of research on greenways regarding mammalian biodiversity, this study sought to determine (1) if mammalian biodiversity on greenways was impacted by increasing levels of urbanization and (2) how mammalian biodiversity on greenways compared to downtown areas. Biodiversity and urbanization were quantified and compared using a combination of camera trapping, acoustic monitoring, and GIS techniques, leading to the conclusions that (1) mesomammal diversity is not impacted by urbanization, but (2) bat biodiversity was significantly higher on greenways than in downtown areas.

Research Data and Supplementary Material

No

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