Global review of services and conflicts provided by raptors in urbanized habitats

Abstract

In an increasingly urbanized world, some raptors successfully colonize and thrive in urban environments, leading to more frequent interactions with humans. These interactions can be either positive, such as providing ecosystem services, or negative, resulting in human-wildlife conflicts. Despite growing literature on these interactions, a comprehensive review focusing on urban environments has been lacking. This study aimed to address this gap by conducting a systematic review using Google Scholar and the Scopus bibliographic database. A total of 45 studies met the search criteria, with a predominant prevalence of the northern hemisphere. Accipitriformes was the most studied order of raptors (50%), followed by Strigiformes (37%), Falconiformes (8%), and Cathartiformes (2%). Positive interactions studied included cultural services, pest control, positive perception, carrion removal, while negative interactions involved safety damage, property damage, negative perception, disease transmission, livestock damage, nuisance and superstitions. Pest control and cultural services were supported by the evidence, although only for specific orders. Carrion removal and aggressiveness appear to decrease with urbanization, although more studies are needed to verify this premise. Both positive and negative perceptions were evident, influenced in part by the knowledge or closeness that people had towards urban raptors. We discuss how the interactions studied influence the daily lives of citizens and, in turn, how human activities shape and influence these interactions. Finally, given that cities are socio-ecological systems, we advocate for methodologies that integrate the social aspects of human-predator interactions along with ecological ones to promote coexistence.