The unprecedented growth of cities and towns around the world, coupled with the unknown effects of global change, has created an urgent need to increase ecological understanding of human settlements, in order to develop inhabitable, sustainable cities and towns in the future. Although there is a wealth of knowledge regarding the understanding of human organisation and behaviour, there is comparably little information available regarding the ecology of cities and towns. This book brings together leading scientists, landscape designers and planners from developed and developing countries around the world, to explore how urban ecological research has been undertaken to date, what has been learnt, where there are gaps in knowledge, and what the future challenges and opportunities are.

Urbanization is a global phenomenon that is increasingly challenging human society. It is therefore crucially important to ensure that the relentless expansion of cities and towns proceeds sustainably. Urban ecology, the interdisciplinary study of ecological patterns and processes in towns and cities, is a rapidly developing field that can provide a scientific basis for the informed decision-making and planning needed to create both viable and sustainable cities. Urban Ecology brings together an international team of leading scientists to discuss our current understanding of all aspects of urban environments, from the biology of the organisms that inhabit them to the diversity of ecosystem services and human social issues encountered within urban landscapes. The book is divided into five sections with the first describing the physical urban environment. Subsequent sections examine ecological patterns and processes within the urban setting, followed by the integration of ecology with social issues. The book concludes with a discussion of the applications of urban ecology to land-use planning. The emphasis throughout is on what we actually know (as well as what we should know) about the complexities of social-ecological systems in urban areas, in order to develop urban ecology as a rigorous scientific discipline.

The unprecedented growth of cities and towns around the world, coupled with the unknown effects of global change, has created an urgent need to increase ecological understanding of human settlements, in order to develop inhabitable, sustainable cities and towns in the future. Although there is a wealth of knowledge regarding the understanding of human organisation and behaviour, there is comparably little information available regarding the ecology of cities and towns. This book brings together leading scientists, landscape designers and planners from developed and developing countries around the world, to explore how urban ecological research has been undertaken to date, what has been learnt, where there are gaps in knowledge, and what the future challenges and opportunities are.