Project Summary
How we develop and landscape properties significantly contributes to urban vegetation communities. This vegetation provides habitat for other creatures, like birds, mammals, fungi, and insects. Vegetation also provides ecosystem services for humans, like carbon sequestration, reducing stormwater runoff, and beautification.
This project investigated how development and management choices affected present day vegetation communities on office developments in Redmond & Bellevue, WA, and how that impacted bird and fungal communities.
We found that having more native trees (preferably old) and native shrubs were most important for supporting native bird communities. Many local species, like Brown Creeper were only found on sites where native conifers had not been cut during development. Fungal communities responded in much the same way.
These results can inform how developers and property owners build and landscape their property, along with tree protection policies and urban forestry policies. We'd love to show you how this and other research could inform your policy or project!
This project investigated how development and management choices affected present day vegetation communities on office developments in Redmond & Bellevue, WA, and how that impacted bird and fungal communities.
We found that having more native trees (preferably old) and native shrubs were most important for supporting native bird communities. Many local species, like Brown Creeper were only found on sites where native conifers had not been cut during development. Fungal communities responded in much the same way.
These results can inform how developers and property owners build and landscape their property, along with tree protection policies and urban forestry policies. We'd love to show you how this and other research could inform your policy or project!
Some of the types of commercial property surveyed.
Project Elements
Research and problem solving: Designed, managed, and executed 2 year research project surveying vegetation, birds, and fungi
Education and communication: Distributed species summary packets to participating office developments
Education and communication: Distributed species summary packets to participating office developments
Project Resources
