Fragmentation effects on the structure of some urban forests in İstanbul

Creative Commons License

Sağlam S., Asan Ü., Lafortezza R., Özkan U. Y.

FORESTIST, cilt.1, sa.1, ss.25-35, 2021 (ESCI)

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 1 Sayı: 1
  • Basım Tarihi: 2021
  • Doi Numarası: 10.5152/forestist.2020.20020
  • Dergi Adı: FORESTIST
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), CAB Abstracts, MLA - Modern Language Association Database, Directory of Open Access Journals, TR DİZİN (ULAKBİM)
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.25-35
  • İstanbul Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Forest fragmentation is the separation or division of large forests into smaller units. Areas with non-forest

lands significantly threaten the health, function, and value of the remaining forest. This study describes the

effects of fragmentation on diversity of forest in the city of Istanbul. We obtained inventory data from local

forest management and silvicultural plans (2002–2007). The data were used to determine the spatial variation

in forest structure and biodiversity across six urban forest fragments in Istanbul, Turkey. We calculated a core

set of patch- and class-level metrics in order to predict forest basal area within sample plots. We tested a number

of regression models and employed the best-fitted model to extrapolate forest diversity across the urban

forest fragments. Results indicate consistent relationship between spatial and silvicultural variables, suggesting

the impact of fragmentation on the forest structure and biodiversity in Istanbul. Species richness of green

spaces in urban areas was higher when compared to that of peri-urban areas. The location and the sizes of

urban forests were associated with difference in societal expectations from these areas. As a consequence of

the expectations, there was a change in forest structure in Istanbul. This study could be conducted for any

other urban areas including large growing cities and megalopolis.