Limited role of urban parks in frog diversity conservation

Global human population had reached 7.6 billion people, of which 55.3% lives in urban areas. Major cities worldwide have established urban parks initially for aesthetic and recreational values but recent research have highlighted its value for biodiversity conservation. However, little research in the Neotropical region has been done to evaluate their effectiveness for this purpose. Here, we addressed the following question: What role do urban parks play in the conservation of frog diversity? We examined the spatial distribution of species richness and reproductive modes of frogs in breeding habitats within urban parks and nearby protected areas. Our findings indicate that urban parks support a limited number of frog species and reproductive modes, which are often generalists and of little concern for conservation. Considering that urban parks are often not designed to minimize the impacts of human activities on biodiversity, we argue that urban planning must move beyond recreational and aesthetic goals to intentionally incorporate biodiversity conservation, ensuring cities support both human well-being and wildlife.