Vacant lots are associated with avian species diversity and occupancy in Detroit

Keywords: Vacant lots, Biodviersity, Birds, Post-industrial City, Urban Studies, Urban Sustainability
Abstract Type: Paper Abstract

Abstract

In post-industrial cities, land vacancy is a complex social issue but creates habitat that may support biodiversity, including birds. We explored whether vacant land and other features of the urban landscape were associated with bird species diversity and occupancy in Detroit, Michigan using data from the Study of Active Neighborhoods in Detroit. Acoustic recordings were collected in June at 110 sites from 2021 – 2024 to determine Shannon diversity, richness and occupancy of birds in 11 Detroit neighborhoods. We compared these metrics to environmental covariates measured in 50m and 100m buffers around each recording site. We found higher Shannon diversity (βvacant lots = 0.105, 95% CI = 0.067 – 0.142) and species richness (IRRvl100m = 1.090, 95% CI [1.051, 1.130]) at recording sites surrounded by greater proportions of vacant land in a 100m buffer. The proportion of roads in 100m buffers was negatively related to Shannon diversity (βroads = -0.127, 95% -0.163 - -0.092) and richness (IRRroads100m = -0.867, 95% CI [0.837, 0.896]). Proportion of vacant land in 50m and 100m buffers also increased the occupancy probability of several bird species, while road and building density decreased this probability. Our results suggest vacant land may promote higher bird diversity and occupancy in Detroit while roads and built infrastructure may diminish it. Human perceptions of vacant land are a critical factor in whether these urban habitats are valued or disdained. An important next step is to understand which features of vacant land may be beneficial to birds and not create negative perspectives from humans.