Evolution in an Urbanizing World
Urban areas are easy to find during the night as they quite literally light up. Urban light pollution disrupts biological processes from gene expression to ecosystem composition across multiple taxa, including birds, insects, mammals, and fishes. With ever-increasing urbanization, understanding the effects of artificial light at night (ALAN) on urban organisms is crucial to future... Continue Reading →
Heavy metals, such as lead and mercury, are common pollutants in human-affected ecosystems, including cities. These metals can bioaccumulate, or reach high concentrations in exposed organisms, because heavy metals may be stored in some tissues, like fats, and are difficult for organisms to remove from their bodies. High levels of heavy metals have negative impacts... Continue Reading →
The annual meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB) is here! From January 3-7 biologists will convene in Austin, Texas to share the latest and greatest from a broad range of research areas. Urban evolution talks have a strong showing at the meeting this year, and we would like to hear about... Continue Reading →
Milestones and more In 2019 we hit a lot of milestones. We turned 1 year old. We were featured in several major news outlets, including as a News Feature in PNAS, the Wildlife Society, and Wired Magazine! We reached over 13,000 visits since starting from (almost) every corner of the globe (we're looking at you,... Continue Reading →
Many people imagine a pristine desert in the Southwest US, with the iconic saguaro cacti in the foreground, mountains in the background. In recent years, these deserts have become highly urbanized. Thankfully, there are protections in place for these majestic, century-old cacti. If you plan to build where there is a saguaro, you have to... Continue Reading →
Eastern Gray Squirrels, Sciurus carolinensis, are some of the most visible and well-known urban animals in the Northeastern United States. Prior to European settlement of the region, the black morph of S. carolinensis ("melanistic") was much more abundant. Scientists have hypothesized that the dark pelt was advantageous in the old growth forests that used to cover the region.... Continue Reading →
Now that winter is upon us, it may seem like there is less urban wildlife around. But there's a chance to spot some really cool mammals like the one for this week's observation. Here we see a bobcat in a back alley chasing a hare! Thanks to LITC contributor Mason Stothart for catching this tweet!... Continue Reading →
A medium-sized mammalian predator seems like an odd find in cities, but around the world sightings of urban coyotes, bobcats, and even mountain lions are becoming more common. Setting up a camera trap also known as a trail camera is a great way to spot these urban animals. A camera trap is a camera that... Continue Reading →
If you've walked around a city with pigeons, you might have noticed that many of them are missing toes or have deformed feet. These foot deformities are common and may arise due to a number of different ailments including: chemicals that make surfaces sticky or apply an unpleasant odor; physical deterrents that are placed on... Continue Reading →
In the month of November we asked to hear from you during our first annual November Comment Contest. Now that the month is over, we've tallied the comments, responses, and likes and we're pleased to announce our two winners: Kristin Thompson and Kevin Aviles-Rodriguez! They'll get to pick the urban organisms featured on the next... Continue Reading →
In Mississauga, ON, Canada, we have a slew of different birds that cause a nuisance. I'm sure most of you know about our geese, they are mean and will chase you down the street if you get too close. There haven't been many pigeons in my grocery store parking lot, probably because these shorebirds are... Continue Reading →
Urban fieldwork is its own beast. Sure, compared to remote sites you might have regular access to bathrooms and food but there are different situations to be aware of or capitalize on when handling animals in the public eye.
With the US Thanksgiving tomorrow, here's a turkey treat! Wild turkeys were found earlier this month terrorizing Holiday City, a New Jersey neighborhood. Wild animals can be dangerous, so keep your distance. Sadly, packs of wild animals get pushed into urban neighborhoods as we continue to develop our cities on their territory. They can cause... Continue Reading →
Entomology 2019 I recently attended the Entomology Conference in St. Louis, Missouri and here are some of the highlights. I was part of the special symposium "What Everyone Ought to Know about Insect Biodiversity in the Urban Environment" where a number of scientists gave talks and posters about their research related to this topic. Biodiversity... Continue Reading →
Here we go again NYC, urban birds! I am always amazed at how many of our observations come from NYC. Before this blog, I had thought that such a large city would only support pests, like pizza rat. Here's a pair of hawks nesting near a clock tower in Marcus Garvey Park (Harlem). A special... Continue Reading →
Proudly powered by WordPress | Theme: Baskerville 2 by Anders Noren.