Proceedings of ICEGEE 2025 Symposium: Sensor Technology and Multimodal Data Analysis

DOI: 10.54254/2753-8818/112/2025.AU23565

Explore the Impacts and Alterations of Urban Environments

Abstract: The accelerating process of urbanization has had an impact on the living
environment of birds and other wildlife; hence, many wild animals and plants have been
forced to become urban settler. Birds, as an important indicator of the ecosystem, and
analyzing the impacts and changes of the urban environment on bird populations can enable
researchers to better understand the state of the ecosystem. Therefore, the purpose of this
paper is to explore the effects of urban environments on bird populations and summarize how
urbanization has changed the bird’s survival in various aspects. The paper finds that
disturbances in urban environments cause birds to develop corresponding adaptive changes
through behavioral changes to avoid the effects of environmental disturbances; meanwhile,
urban birds also use some features of urban environments to reduce the consumption of their
survival. The analysis in this paper briefly summarizes the impact of urbanization on the
survival of birds in various aspects.

Keywords: Birds, Urbanization, Reproduction, Behavior

1. Introduction
As modern urbanization continues, the proportion of the natural environment is decreasing, and
human activities are inevitably affecting the natural environment and ecosystem. Urbanization means
the expansion of urban land and the rise of population, as of 2024, the population living in urban area
is 55% of the total population [1]. Cities have gradually become the mainstay of human development,
and correspondingly, with the expansion of urban areas and the occupation of natural resources, the
natural environment has been degraded, the reduction in the living space for wildlife appear
correspondingly. Birds, as an important part of both urban and natural ecosystems, are sensitive to
habitat changes, widely distributed, and characterized by high species diversity, is an important
indicator for studying ecological changes. It is crucial to the protection of natural resources; the
development of society relies on the balance between the nature and the cities. Therefore, by studying
the survival status of urban populations of birds and comparing the behavioral and physiological
differences between urban and natural populations, we can better understand the status of the urban
environment, and thus build a balanced and sustainable modern society.
Research on the adaptation of bird populations in urban areas has attracted the attention of
researchers in various fields of ecology and zoology. Scholars in different fields have been studying
the behavioral and physiological changes of bird populations in urban areas and summarizing the
adaptations of birds in urban areas, it has been widely noticed whether the breeding behavior of birds
is affected by various characteristics of urban environment. A research team from Tehran University
© 2025 The Authors. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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 Proceedings of ICEGEE 2025 Symposium: Sensor Technology and Multimodal Data Analysis
DOI: 10.54254/2753-8818/112/2025.AU23565

summarized the factors affecting birds’ nesting location choices in cities by studying the
characteristics and patterns of Laughing Dove (Spilopelia senegalensis) on nesting sites in urban
environments in Iran [2]. A research team from Qufu, China pointed out the behavioral adaptations
of the Black crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) to urbanization by combining the degree
of urbanization and the height of nesting [3]. Aspects of the urban environment not only change bird
populations behaviorally but are also critical to the change of physiological changes in bird
populations, among which the effects of urban nighttime ligh on bird endocrinology have received
attention, such as the researchers from Minzu University of China who addressed the relationship
between metabolic capacity and nighttime light in the Australian Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia castanotis)
[4].
This article summarizes the survival of bird populations in urban environments by interpreting
existing research results, and discusses how to promote the balanced development of urban
environments through urban wildlife research. The article will begin with an analysis of the
environmental characteristics of cities as habitats, followed by a summary of changes in bird
populations in response to factors in cities.
2. Environmental characterization
2.1. Bird habitat characteristics
Birds’ choices of habitat is influenced by various factors. These factors include food resources,
breeding conditions and safety. Generally, habitats have sufficient food reserves and suitable water
distribution. Different species of birds have different habitat requirements, including wading birds
and swimming birds, such as black crowned night herons and egrets among wading birds and mallards
and swans among swimming birds. Some members of the Pelecaniformes and the Anseriformes
prefer water-rich environments for feeding and breeding. Arboreal birds require a certain number of
trees in their habitat for nesting.
However, these needs usually cannot be fully met in urban environments, where facilities are
designed for human activities, and bird populations with strong adaptive capacity can gain a greater
advantage I urban environments. At the same time, strong adaptive capacity also means that dominant
urban populations do not usually have physiological traits that are specialized for one environment.
In urban environments, the areas that can satisfy the habitat needs of birds are mainly concentrated in
green lands, such as parks and greenery, which are richer in natural resources than other facilities and
areas in the city, and are more suitable for the survival of birds.
2.2. The current state of urban environments
Urban ecosystems are characterized by the fact that cities are built and designed based on the needs
of human activities. The survival of wildlife in urban environments are usually involved in variety of
disturbances. Studies have shown that urban environments are characterized by many disturbances
and patchy distribution of suitable habitats; urban climates act differently from natural environments,
with the urban heat island effect, where temperatures are usually higher than in the external
environment; and low diversity of plant and animal species in urban areas, resulting in monocultures
and low vegetation cover [5]. The disturbances caused by human activities are mainly in the form of
noise, pollution and light, etc. generated by human behavior and man-made structures.
3. Influence of urbanization on birds
In urban environments, birds need to face different disturbances that in their natural habitat. Urban
disturbances are caused by human impacts: transportation systems, modern buildings, etc. The

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 Proceedings of ICEGEE 2025 Symposium: Sensor Technology and Multimodal Data Analysis
DOI: 10.54254/2753-8818/112/2025.AU23565

reduction of natural habitats due to urbanization caused birds populations tend to have more
concentrated distribution on certain preparable regions, parks, etc. For some species that are able to
adapt to human-made structures, it is feasible for them to choose to nest in modern building, using
unnatural materials that can be found in the city, but such choices may possibly crate problems of
conflict with human, and in terms of health and hygiene, the overlap between birds and human
settlements can hurt both birds and human’s health. Often, urban environments produce disturbances
to a greater extent than natural environments, an example of this is the impact of noise from urban
areas, noise form transportation systems and human activities can affect the daily activities of birds,
which rely on song to communicate information, noise has the potential to interfere with the proper
transmission of acoustic information. meanwhile, human activities themselves can interfere with
birds’ search for food, choosing the correct response to potential harm, and discerning whether an
object approaching is dangerous. Birds will tend to avoid these factors in the city, thus choosing urban
green spaces closer to the natural environment as a place to live, these parks and green spaces in the
city had scattered distribution, in the limited area, forming the urban environment habitat appearing
patchy and fragmented characteristics. The distribution of birds in urban green space is related to the
size of the green space, usually the larger the area, the greater diversity of species; the deeper the
degree of urbanization, the lower the diversity.
The impact of urbanization on the distribution of birds is mainly reflected in the reduction of
suitable habitats caused by urbanization, which affects the survival status of bird populations. Inside
the city, bird populations mainly live in urban green spaces, which are limited in size and resources
abundance, and are separated by other facilities and buildings, all of which constrain the diversity of
urban bird populations. At the same time, there are some dominant species, some of which are better
able to adapt to changes in the cities and thus have an advantage in such environment, mainly in terms
of being able to carry out their activities more efficiently.
4. Adaptation of birds
Birds adaption to urban environments by changes in physiological and behavioral states. For example,
birds adapt to the effects of noise in urban environments by altering their song patterns, e.g., urban
birds shorten the duration of a single call to ensure that the transmission of a message is less likely to
be interrupted [6], and by altering the frequency of the call to avoid noise interfering with the
transmission of sound [7]. For example, some urban bird populations call louder or for shorter
durations than those in natural environments to ensure that messages are adequately transmitted in
noisy urban environments. The timing of calls may also vary in response of the noise at different
times of the day in the city. Meanwhile, birds show the ability to learn and adapt to the rapid changes
in urban environments.
In terms of reproduction, bird populations in urban environments choose locations that are better
protected from disturbances, and tend to nest higher compare to location choices in natural
environments. In addition, urban birds are thought to be more receptive to new nesting materials and
choose man-made structures for nesting locations [8]. A study on nesting materials of birds in urban
areas of Pakistan showed that the proportion of man-made materials used by birds for nesting
increased along with degree of urbanization, such as the usage of metals, plastics, etc. for building
and supporting nest structures [9]. The fact that urban bird populations choose materials that are more
readily available implies that urban bird populations are capable of learning and are more receptive
to new things. Urban bird populations show physiologically higher tolerance to human behavior,
which leads to shorter flighting distances.
This paragraph uses the black-crowned night herons (Nycticorax nycticorax) as an example to
illustrate the adaptive behavior made by urban populations in terms of breeding behavior.
Behaviorally choice of nesting locations during the breeding season, with the species populations

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 Proceedings of ICEGEE 2025 Symposium: Sensor Technology and Multimodal Data Analysis
DOI: 10.54254/2753-8818/112/2025.AU23565

choosing to nest at higher sites in highly urbanized areas than in natural environments, coinciding
with a general pattern of disturbance, the specie population in urban areas had shorter flight distances
than those in less urbanized areas, suggesting that night heron populations have adapted to the
changes brought by urbanization in terms of behavior. In the selection of nesting materials,
populations in urban environments choose materials differently from those in their natural habitats,
Bird populations in urban environments show higher densities than in rural and natural
environments due to differences in food and other resources available in urban areas as well as the
climate. This difference in density is partly due to the fragmented and dispersed distribution of
preferable habitat as one of urban environment characteristics, which caused the phenomenon of high
density and low diversity due to the tendency of birds to live in these environments; additionally, it
has been suggested that urban environments have richer food reserves than low urbanized areas [9].
Meanwhile the long-term changes of organization on bird populations are not only reflecting the
response of birds to disturbances, based on some of the characteristics of urban environments, birds
may transform these characteristics into favorable factors for the survival of the populations by
changing their behavioral patterns. Studies have shown that urbanization provides an advantage for
birds during winter in cities by altering the climate, such as an increase in temperatures due to the
urban heat island effect, and by increasing available resources: more food reserves and relatively
fewer predators, which transforms some migratory species into resident populations [10]. A study of
the migratory behavior of urban and forest populations of the European blackbird (Turdus merula)
found that urban populations are gradually preferring to stay in urban environments as breeding
grounds for the winter, based on the urban resources that facilitate wintering and early reproduction
[11].
By studying the survival of birds in the city, it can give us a better understanding of the health and
status of the urban environment and help us build a sustainable and eco-friendly city.
5. Suggestions
The impact of urbanization on all types of wildlife, including birds, cannot be ignored, and it is vital
to balance urban development with the protection of the natural environment. This not only means
protecting existing natural habitats but also requires consideration of the survival of birds in cities.
With regard to the survival of urban populations of birds, it is undeniable that cities are not the best
option for bird survival. In the process of urban development and planning, although the principle of
human-centeredness should be adhered to, it is necessary to take into account the survival of birds
and other plants and animals in the construction. For the survival of birds, urban planning can add
more greenery, expand the area of parks and other facilities in line with the conditions of survival of
birds, and as far as possible to maintain the stability of species diversity within the urban environment.
This protection of birds can ultimately have a positive impact on the overall development of the city
and provide a better experience for people living in the city.
6. Conclusion
This paper summarizes previous studies and reports on urbanization and bird survival to provide as
comprehensive an understanding as possible of the current status of urban survival of birds. This
paper finds that bird populations survive in urban environments and are affected by various aspects
of urbanization. Urban environments are characterized by a variety of disturbances not found in
natural habitats, and birds adapt to urbanization through behavioral and physiological changes, such
as noise and human activities. Urbanization not only interferes with the survival of birds, but also
some features of urban environments change the survival conditions of birds. Climate change caused
by factors of cities is gradually altering the migration and breeding behaviors of migratory birds, and

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 Proceedings of ICEGEE 2025 Symposium: Sensor Technology and Multimodal Data Analysis
DOI: 10.54254/2753-8818/112/2025.AU23565

is gradually forming urban populations that are different from their natural environment populations.
This paper summarizes the results of current research on the survival of birds. More attention can be
paid to the urban survival of birds and how to strengthen their ability to survive in cities and hwo to
enhance the inclusiveness of urban environments.
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