TY - GEN A1 - Damptey, Frederick Gyasi A1 - Frimpong, Bernard Fosu A1 - Kwame Debrah, Daniel A1 - Agro, Prince Pascal A1 - Debrah Wiafe, Edward T1 - Vegelation attributes drive the taxonomic richness and functional composition of beetles and spidersr In mountalnous urban green T2 - Energy, Ecology and Environment N2 - Urban green spaces (UGS) enhance the quality of life in urban environments and serve as habitat corridors or refuge for organisms, including beetles and spiders. The attributes of UGS allow them to harbour species that offer essential ecosystem services. However, the ability of UGS to provide services is limited by the extent to which they have been altered anthropogenically. We described the taxonomic richness and functional composition of arthropods in a mountainous urban ecosystem of Ghana by focussing on the activity of both beetles and spiders at the family level. Two main land-use types (woodlands and built-up areas) were identified and characterised based on the presence or absence of certain vegetation attributes. Sixteen plots in each land-use type with sizes 20 × 20 m were demarcated and fitted with four pitfall traps in each plot to sample continuously for eight weeks, the activity density of both beetles and spiders. Samples were sorted into families and functional groups (detritivores, fungivores, herbivores and predators). The taxonomic richness and activity density were both significantly higher in the woodlands than in the built-up areas. Similarly, all functional groups showed a higher affinity to the woodlands than the built-up areas. Habitat attributes defined by plant diversity and structural complexity were the underlying drivers explaining the differences in arthropod communities between the land-use types. Though the built-up areas seem degraded and open, the remaining small vegetation patches still support the activities of some taxa that should merit the protection of such remnant vegetation in urban ecosystems. KW - Activity density KW - Arthropod community composition KW - Functional composition KW - Land-use change KW - Taxonomic richness KW - Mountainous urban ecosystem Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s40974-021-00236-z SN - 2363-7692 VL - 7 IS - 3 SP - 268 EP - 280 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Damptey, Frederick Gyasi A1 - Opuni-Frimpong, Nana Yeboaa A1 - Arimiyaw, Abdul Wahid A1 - Bentsi-Enchill, Felicity A1 - Wiafe, Edward Debrah A1 - Abeyie, Betty Boante A1 - Mensah, Martin Kofi A1 - Debrah, Daniel Kwame A1 - Yeboah, Augustine Oti A1 - Opuni-Frimpong, Emmanuel T1 - Citizen Science Approach for Assessing the Biodiversity and Ecosystem Service Potential of Urban Green Spaces in Ghana T2 - Land N2 - Urban green spaces are linked to good human health and well-being, sustainable cities and communities, climate action, life on land and under water, as well as offering a platform for quality nature-based education. Their efficient management will no doubt be necessary if strides are to be made in efforts to protect biodiversity and enhance ecosystem service delivery in urban areas. This will, in part, require building the capacity of community members as citizen scientists to take up conservation roles. This study explored the levels of biodiversity and the proxy-based ecosystem service potential of urban green spaces in Sunyani, Ghana, using citizen science approaches. The green spaces accessed were the University of Energy and Natural Resources Wildlife Sanctuary and Arboretum, the Sunyani Parks and Gardens, the Sunyani Residency Park, and the Sunyani Senior High School Woodlot. The different levels of biodiversity (trees, arthropods) and ecosystem services were observed for the five green spaces assessed, with a significant relationship observed between arthropod communities and vegetation variables. Our results showed that citizen scientists perceived urban green spaces to supply more significant provisioning and regulating services than any other ecosystem services, even though they were highly dissatisfied with how green spaces are managed. The children’s perception of the composition of nature was slightly narrow, as they largely centered on plants and animals only. Even so, their awareness of the value of nature was high, as were the threats of human activities to nature. Citizen science approaches could complement biodiversity studies in data-deficient regions; however, collected data may require additional verification and validation from experts for conclusive and better inferences. KW - environmental education KW - nature conservation KW - sustainable development goals KW - urbanization Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3390/land11101774 SN - 2073-445X VL - 11 IS - 10 ER -