Cities, often seen as ecological wastelands, actually have the potential to produce exceptional biologists. While traditional biologists typically come from rural backgrounds, urban residents possess diverse skill sets that make them better ones.
Take myself as an example. Growing up in Philadelphia provided me with a unique angle to look at urban ecology. The city's distinct seasons, plentiful squirrels, row homes, and festivals served as my first ecological classroom. It was there that I witnessed wild cats eating birds and rats, people driving bats from their homes, and snakes being killed by lawn mowers(割草机). This was ecology in action, as real as any observation in fields and forests.
The unique environment of urban areas encourages wildlife there to develop distinct feature s and behaviors that set them apart from their rural counterparts: they may be larger in size, be active at different times of the day, move differently, and even display different personalities. Some biologists argue they are even "smarter" because they balance more risks, such as exposure to roads, poisonous chemicals and diseases from domestic animals—with rewards, of course, like inhabitable parks and human-provided food.
As human residents of cities, we too adapt to the risks and challenges of urban living. This adaptation sharpens our intuition(直觉)—we learn which streets to avoid and lock our doors for safety. Our ability to assess threats and our awareness regarding safety influence our behaviors and choices, much as they do for urban wildlife. Shared experiences such as these enable us to better understand and appreciate urban wildlife.
Most of the world's population now accesses green and blue spaces, as well as wildlife, within urban neighborhoods. Nature is no longer only untouched wilderness; it includes sounds of human laughter, trash trucks and fire alarms. We urban residents are resourceful and imaginative. We need more capacity, more participation, more energy and more innovation in science to create solutions to fight environmental degradation and reduce biodiversity loss. Identifying this talent across cities presents a practical approach.