Interactions between animals and plants in urban forests

INTERACTIONS BETWEEN ANIMALS AND PLANTS IN URBAN FORESTS ABSTRACT This Bachelor thesis focuses on the influence of big mammals (especially Cervidae, wild boars, badgers and foxes) on herb understory in urban forests. Cities are continuously expanding and thus occupy natural habitats of the animals. Therefore, these animals are habituating in urban forests. The specific conditions of both urban and forest habitats and their influences on animal and plant distribution are mentioned. From the possible influences of animals on herb understory, special emphasis is put on herbivory, which can affect individuals, populations and even whole plant assembly. The influence of trampling, urination and burrowing are also investigated. Finally there is a summary of big mammals' influence in relation to human influences. Key words: Urban forests, herbivory, herb layer, disturbation, nutrients, large mammal