Emily’s Reviews > Darwin Comes to Town: How the Urban Jungle Drives Evolution > Status Update

Catfish in France 5 ft long, eat pigeons. Birds sing higher pitched songs in open areas because dense vegetation muffles higher notes. Urban birds sing higher pitched songs. For oscines, its behavior (adjusts to conditions) whereas it may be genetic for suboscines and frogs. Their song is predetermined (not learned) so harder to adjust. Song may be shorter, more spaced out notes so echoes from buildings are reduced.

Organisms in fragmented urban habitats form local genetically distinct populations. Bobcats gen. different between North and South LA, separated by highways. Genetic drift/inbreeding a concern. White-footed mice gen. diff. between each park, developed adaptations to pollution. Pigeons form darker plumage so melanin molecules bind/get rid of heavy metal pollutants. Smaller pop. able to quickly adapt.

Its been way too long. Glad to pick up a new book, especially a nature book. New word: myrmecophile. Ecosystem engineers create new niches for other organisms to use (ants). Humans are important ecosystem engineers since organisms are adapting to urban environments. House mosquitoes in subway underground are different than mosquitoes aboveground and are different between each tunnel.