Not all mammalian small carnivores are equal: A global review of the research effort in urban areas

Human population increase and anthropogenic land-use changes are impacting biodiversity globally. Information on their impacts on urban wildlife is becoming increasingly apparent. Despite an increasing trend in urban wildlife studies, a systematic assessment of mammalian small carnivores in urban areas is lacking. We evaluated urban studies in international peer-reviewed journals using a systematic review process. We assessed urban wildlife publications from 1970–2021 to quantify trends over time regarding the taxonomic family and geographical focus of publications across the globe. Urban small carnivore studies have increased progressively through the decades, with 87.2% of all studies conducted in the last 20 years. Geographically, we found that small carnivore studies were disproportionately conducted, with 77.0% of all studies taking place in either North America (46.5%) or Europe (30.5%). Furthermore, the United States of America (39.8%) and the United Kingdom (11.4%) contributed t..., We carried out a comprehensive literature search to quantify the available research on urban mammalian small carnivores. We compiled data from only international peer-reviewed published journals. Article titles were found using the Google Scholar and Web of Science online search engine databases using the search phrase “\"Urban Mammal\" OR \"Urban Carnivore\" AND Mammal” with the following keyword \"*\" notation: mammal, carnivore, urban, suburban, city, periurban, exurban, residential. In Scopus, articles were found using the search phrase TITLE-ABS-KEY (urban)) AND ((mammal)) AND (carnivore) AND PUBYEAR AFT 1970, following with OR function with different types of urban areas (suburban, city, periurban, exurban, and residential). The search timeframe was limited between 1970 and the end of 2021. Literature resources included in the analysis were only those with a fully accessible abstract. Publications were incorporated in the review if they represented wildlife-based research (non-domestic ...,