Temporal Continuities of Grasslands and Forests as Patches of Natural Land in Urban Landscapes: A Case Study of the Tsukuba Science City

Abstract

Development has fragmented urban nature, and target sites for conservation strategies need to be those that have long maintained their original land cover in a clustered area. Additionally, continuously grasping changes from rural to urban as well as changes over decades after urbanization is essential. Therefore, this study identified and investigated natural patches in urban landscapes, clarified actual management practices in the identified patches, and traced changes in land ownership and land cover during the past 130 years in the Tsukuba Science City, Japan. We first identified areas containing clusters of urban grasslands and forest patches that have existed since the 2010s. We then identified urban green space patches that since the 1880s have remained undeveloped after being agricultural landscapes, despite the rapid urbanization of the Tsukuba Science City since the 1970s. These patches of urban green space were mainly identified near rural communities, research institutions, planned development sites, and golf courses. The findings of this study highlighted the need for new policy implications through systematic arrangement of diverse conservation strategies to maintain urban green space patches. Further investigation is required to elucidate the ecosystem services provided by these remnant green patches.