Widespread introduced species dominate the urban tree assemblage on the endemic-rich tropical island of Sao Tome.

ABSTRACT: The Afrotropics are experiencing some of the fastest urbanisation rates on the planet but the impact of city growth on their rich and unique biodiversity remains understudied, especially compared to natural baselines. Little is also known about how introduced species influence β-diversity in these contexts, and how patterns coincide with native ranges of species. Here we investigated how tree assemblages of the endemic-rich Afrotropical island of São Tomé differed between urban, rural and natural zones. These were primarily characterised by urban greenspaces, shade plantations, and old-growth forests, respectively. Based on 81 transects, we assessed biodiversity metrics of endemic, native and introduced species. Tree abundance and species richness were highest in the natural zone, where th

SUBMITTER: Strauß L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11366497 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature