Data from: What does urbanization actually mean? A review and framework for urban metrics in wildlife research

1. Extensive research has demonstrated that urbanization strongly alters
ecological processes, often perniciously. However, quantifying the
magnitude of urban effects and determining how generalized they can be
across systems depends on the ways in which urbanization is measured and
modelled. 2. We coupled a formal literature survey with a novel conceptual
framework to document and synthesize the myriad of metrics used to
quantify urbanization. The framework enables clear cataloguing of urban
metrics by identifying) the urban component measured, ii) the method of
measurement, iii) the metric’s spatial scale, and iv) the metric’s
temporal nature. Thus, the framework comprehensively captures the what,
how, where, and when of urban metrics.3. We documented striking
variability in urban metrics with respect to which urban components were
measured as well as how, where, and when they were quantified. Overall,
our survey revealed that they tended to be: i) be structurally-focused,
ii) methodologically simplistic, iii) spatially variable, and iv)
temporally static. 4. Synthesis and applications. Many metrics are used to
quantify urbanization or “urban-ness”. The variation in urban metrics
complicates the development of theory, comparisons of findings across
studies, and the implementation of management and conservation actions. To
pave a clear path forward for more efficient and policy-relevant urban
research, we systematically organized urban metrics using a simple,
flexible, and comprehensive framework. The framework clarifies what
urbanization actually means in empirical practice and identifies several
crucial areas for future research, including: i) systematic assessments of
urban metrics across multiple scales, ii) an increased and judicious use
of more complex urban metrics aimed at evaluating both mechanistic and
broad-scale correlative ecological hypotheses, and iii) an increased
emphasis on the socio-economic aspects of urban effects.