Urban Habitats and Rights of Way
Urban habitats and rights-of-way include lands highly impacted by human use. They have been intensively modified to support human habitation, transportation, commerce, and recreation. This includes areas with golf courses or sites for manufactured goods development. Additionally, the areas in this description include the corridors used to move goods, services, energy, and people by means of vehicles, pipes, wires, etc. These areas may be managed to serve multiple purposes as backyards, parks, and rights-of-way, offering resources to wildlife and plants. These ecosystems can be found across all of Indiana in all SWAP regions. Common species include Canada geese (Branta canadensis) and rock pigeons (Columba livia). Some mammals such as raccoons (Procyon lotor), foxes (Vulpes vulpes), and coyotes (Canis latrans) have adapted particularly well to life in suburban and urban areas. Typical plant life is made up of species such as silver maple (Acer saccharinum) and pin oak (Quercus palustris). Despite the alterations they have undergone to support human needs, these regions are still home to many Species of Greatest Conservation Need like Virginia mallow (Sida hermaphodita), peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus), and smooth greensnake (Opheodrys vernalis).
Areas classified as urban habitat and rights of way ecosystems in Indiana in 2024.
- Ecosystem Services and Human Benefits
In 2024, urban and suburban areas covered 14% of the state and increased 6% in area from 2014-2024. Nearly 70% of Indiana residents live in cities and towns. Recent increases in population and subsequent residential sprawl have led to the fragmentation and destruction of many urban green spaces. These green spaces are important both for human health and the plant and wildlife species that depend on them. Changes in climate, marked by increasing temperatures and precipitation, have also affected urban habitats and rights-of-way. Severe and extreme weather events are becoming more common and serious, causing threats to both human and wildlife populations. Invasive species are also problematic in urban areas, where they often flourish. This increasing prevalence of invasive pest species poses significant challenges to public health and biodiversity. Rights-of-way, particularly roads, cause direct mortality for many wildlife species because of vehicle collisions, which also endanger human safety.
- Ecosystem Status
Peak flows of Indiana rivers and streams are evolving because of changes in climate. Increases in precipitation have coincided with increased streamflow during the last 30 years. With predicted changes, the risk of flooding from river and stream systems will continue to increase.
Much of the pollution in Indiana’s rivers and streams stems from extensive farmland runoff and industrial activities. Low-head dams on streams and rivers in Indiana also cause significant risks to human safety and fragment the aquatic ecosystem. The spread of invasives is also apparent, with many mobilizing through human behavior. Fish, such as invasive carp species; and aquatic plants, including purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria); have begun to infiltrate, taking up resources and displacing native species.
- Ecosystem Pressures
Indiana urban habitats and rights-of-way (ROWs) face pressures from severe and extreme weather. Annual temperature and precipitation levels are expected to continually increase throughout the next decade, causing more extreme weather. Flooding, drought, and extreme heat have the potential to affect all organisms in these ecosystems. Additionally, extreme hot temperatures during the summer create a habitat unsuitable for native maple trees, instead favoring warm-season grasses. As species composition changes, so does the availability of food sources for resident wildlife. The stress from heat and increased precipitation may also favor the spread of invasive species and reduce carbon storage in trees. In areas already facing ecological stress, these vulnerabilities will be exacerbated, potentially causing permanent ecosystem damage.
Road construction poses similar pressures on urban and suburban habitats with unique impacts via chemical pollution, vehicle collisions with wildlife, and barriers to wildlife movement. Ecosystem quality may be impacted by road runoff, which can contain substances such as salts, heavy metals, and even gasoline that alter soil chemistry and water quality. Vehicle collisions result in the death of nearly 14,000 deer each year in Indiana. Other common victims are raccoons, opossums, and frogs. Limited roaming space and isolation cause further pressures on wildlife with large home ranges. Animals with low reproductive rates and those found in low density populations, including carnivores and amphibians, are at greatest risk from roads.
Additional pressures that affect urban habitat and right-of-way ecosystems in Indiana can be explored here.
- Ecosystem Conservation Opportunities
Conservation professionals highlighted two opportunities for reducing pressures in urban habitat and right-of-way ecosystems. The first is to create a coalition supporting community involvement in local decision making. There are numerous opportunities for the public to engage in conservation efforts in Indiana urban and suburban habitats. Creating materials to support community engagement and encourage awareness and motivation about conservation activities in the public will build a broad coalition of support for these measures. Ultimately, community action can help reduce key pressures on ecosystems when groups of core constituents get involved with local decision making.
It is also important to extend this community involvement to youth by supporting civic engagement of K-12 students in conservation matters. Engagement from K-12 students will further bolster our preservation efforts with conservation-related civic engagement discussions in the classroom and opportunities to provide service via school events. This not only increases tangible action in the short-term but also will increase policy-related and voting action in the future as we build a community educated on conservation topics.