Search

• We implement the landscape mosaic model to describe UBS recreation diversity. • We investigate seasonal patterns of riverine activity among Instagram users. • Both ecological and social ephemerals explain recreational demand for UBS. • The social-ecological mosaic shapes seasonal patterns of use intensity. • Intensity of visits to more natural areas does not depend on ephemeral phenomena. Urban Blue Spaces provide multiple benefits to city dwellers and, therefore, are a key element in the social-ecological system. To responsibly maximise these benefits, it is necessary to link data and knowledge on the social and ecological functions of the urban ecosystem. This paper aims to identify recreational use intensity patterns of urban riverfronts along the Vistula river in Warsaw, Poland. The landscape mosaic model was used to identify differences along the urban core–periphery axis, and explore disparities induced by the variety of riverfront functions. Recreational demand for the river was assessed by measuring the daily activity of Instagram users in 2019. The short-term perspective we applied allowed us to examine the role of several ephemeral factors on the variability of use intensity. Our results indicate that both the position along the core–periphery axis, and the social-ecological characteristics of urban riverfronts can shape seasonal patterns of use intensity. Overall, Instagram users concentrate their activity in the city centre. Seasonal fluctuations are found across the mosaic of Warsaw's riverscape, due to both its ecological (level of naturalness) and social (recreation versus 'entertainment machine') functions. Ephemeral factors shape recreational patterns in various ways: (1) fine weather attracts Instagram users more than unfavourable conditions discourage them; (2) demand for 'pure' riverine nature is independent of all of the proposed factors; and (3) the relationship between air quality and use intensity is weak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper reports on the changes in the spatial structure of landscape in the years 1950–1990 within the Warsaw metropolitan area. The analysis was aimed at identification of (a) the influence of the distance from the center of the city and from the transport routes on the values of landscape metrics, (b) changes in time of the landscape metrics of forests and built-up areas, (c) the influence of habitats, transportation network and the distance from the center on the directions and intensity of urban growth. Several landscape metrics were chosen to describe the landscape pattern (spatial share, mean patch size, patch size coefficient of variance, mean shape index, mean nearest neighbor distance, mean proximity index, and interspersion and juxtaposition index). The majority of changes in land cover took place in the years 1950–1970, but relations between landscape metrics and the distance from the center of Warsaw as well as from the transport routes, had a persistent character over the entire period studied. The influence of the habitat differentiation (expressed in categories of potential natural vegetation) in land cover is relatively unimportant in the vicinity of the city center and in the direct neighborhood of roads, while it would become the dominating factor in the periphery. The landscape metrics enable the description of the spatial regularities and trends, and constitute useful indirect indicators of the impact of urbanization on cultural (rural) landscape and of the general ecosystem disturbance. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Presence of Alexander's patterns in an urban landscape was associated with positive affect. • The patterns were associated mostly with the emotion of relaxation. • Pattern theory is a manifestation of the conservative rather than the progressive place meaning. • With the exception of the downtown, Warsaw was judged as relaxing and relatively boring. A pattern language is a set of recipes, described by the architect Christopher Alexander, to help design spaces that will appeal to everybody and satisfy basic human needs. In this paper, we tested (1) whether the presence of patterns in an urban landscape is associated with a positive affect and aesthetic appreciation, and (2) what kind of emotions (low or high arousal) are elicited by settings with identified patterns and thus whether pattern theory is a manifestation of the conservative (enclosed, with continuous identity and offering rest) or the progressive (open, dynamic, and promoting social interaction) meaning of place. Participants evaluated 1310 panoramic pictures covering the entire area of a large European city (Warsaw), according to the four types of elicited affect (relaxation, excitement, irritation, and boredom), aesthetics (pretty vs. ugly settings), and liking. Expert judges estimated the presence of 68 patterns in the same pictures. The findings show that the presence of patterns in an urban landscape was associated with increased positive affect, aesthetic appreciation of the setting, and more liking. The effects of the presence of patterns were not eliminated by the content of the pictures (e.g., the presence or lack of nature). The dominant emotion was that of relaxation, suggesting that pattern language theory is rooted in the conservative (essentialist) rather than the progressive (anti-essentialist) concept of place. Except for the strictly defined downtown, Warsaw was judged as a mostly relaxed, and somewhat boring city. Alternative explanations and suggestions for future studies have been presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]