An integrated social–ecological–evolutionary–phenotypic ( <scp>SEEP</scp> ) approach to understanding animal responses to urbanization

Humans play key roles in shaping the structure and processes of ecosystems globally, especially in cities. This recognition has prompted a recent focus on understanding urban systems via interactions between human social systems and ecological and evolutionary processes. Most research has focused on interactions between two of these three domains. Here we present a framework for linking all three - social, ecological, and evolutionary - by focusing on phenotypic response and effect traits, illustrating the framework's utility in understanding wildlife dynamics in urban systems. We first present a generalized model for the social-ecological-evolutionary-phenotypic (SEEP) framework, then use urban climate as a specific example, provide guidance on how to implement this approach, and finally discuss emerging questions motivated by the framework and challenges in utilizing the approach.

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Publication Details

Journal
Biological reviews/Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society
Published
2025-10-03
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.70088
Primary Topic
Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

An integrated social–ecological–evolutionary–phenotypic ( SEEP ) approach to understanding animal responses to urbanization

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Biological reviews/Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society
Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
article

An integrated social–ecological–evolutionary–phenotypic ( SEEP ) approach to understanding animal responses to urbanization

Jeffrey D. Haight, Shaylynn Trego, Karen L. Sweazea, Aaron M. Grade, Katherine Weiss, Kevin E. McCluney, Elizabeth J. Carlen, Chase A. Niesner, Jeffrey A. G. Clark, Pierre Deviche
article en

Abstract

Humans play key roles in shaping the structure and processes of ecosystems globally, especially in cities. This recognition has prompted a recent focus on understanding urban systems via interactions between human social systems and ecological and evolutionary processes. Most research has focused on interactions between two of these three domains. Here we present a framework for linking all three - social, ecological, and evolutionary - by focusing on phenotypic response and effect traits, illustrating the framework's utility in understanding wildlife dynamics in urban systems. We first present a generalized model for the social-ecological-evolutionary-phenotypic (SEEP) framework, then use urban climate as a specific example, provide guidance on how to implement this approach, and finally discuss emerging questions motivated by the framework and challenges in utilizing the approach.

Biological reviews/Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical SocietyVol. 101(1)
Berkeley College (US), Bowling Green State University (US), Washington University in St. Louis (US), Central Park Conservancy (US), Metron (United States) (US), Living Systems (United States) (US), Arizona State University (US), Marist University (US), University of California, Berkeley (US)
Openalex Percentile: Top 73%
Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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