Qiu_et_al_2013

Ling Qiu, Stefan Lindberg, Anders Busse Nielsen (2013). Is biodiversity attractive?—On-site perception of recreational and biodiversity values in urban green space. Landscape and Urban Planning 119:136-146, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2013.07.007.


Keywords: Green infrastructure, green space, biodiversity, perceptions, methods

  • wanted to know if people distinguish biologically rich environments in urban green spaces
  • used qualitative descriptions of difference in habitat types
  • looked at plant species richness and vegetation structure
    • scaled from 1-3 for each biodiversity measure and then based on overall score grouped into low, med, or high biodiversity
  • vegetative complexity mostly descriptive
  • did photography tests to assess preferences (VEP)
  • Perception of species richness matched assessed biodiversity level but there was no preference for biodiversity
    • people preferred ornamental lawns (but also accurately described them as low biodiversity environments)