Interaction of forest types
The urban forest is "in town", both the city center and the suburbs.
The exurban and rural forest is the forestland outside of town.
The forestland that may very well become the next subdivision, extending the town limits, and thereby extending the urban forest.
This forestland is large enough to have the attributes and function of a forest.
There may not be a sharp delineation between these forests. They hopefully connect, the way our roads connect our neighborhoods.
Connectivity it important to our communities.
Here is a network or roads that connects us to the next town and out into the country.
Connectivity is also important to forests, for wildlife corridors, seed travel and propagation, human recreation, and also stormwater management.
Here I removed the roads, for a clearer picture.
As more development occurs, and the urban area grows, there is less and less rural forestland nearby.
If we aren't careful, we remove the forest connectivity and all the benefits we get from it.
We could grow differently though.
We could be sure to retain some natural connectivity.
These light green lines are not rural forest, but they are large forested tracts that connect the different forest types, thereby retaining the benefits of forestland and connectivity. They also connect the towns with a new kind of connectivity, one that brings with it recreation, bicycle travel, birdwatching, and other benefits that would not exist without them.
