城市墙壁生态研究的历程、价值与展望

History, Value, and Prospects of Ecological Research on Urban Walls

关键词:  风景园林  墙壁生态  自生植物  城市生境  生物多样性  再野化

Key words:  landscape architecture  wall ecology  spontaneous plant  urban habitat  biodiversity  rewilding

摘要:

城市发展正转向存量提质增效的新阶段，作为以自然过程主导的“非常规、非正式”城市生境，墙壁逐渐显现出在生物多样性保育、城市立体生态网络 构建以及灰色消极空间再激活中的独特价值。然而，国内外关于墙壁生态研究的发展脉络、概念演化及理论基础仍缺乏系统梳理，限制了公众与学界对墙壁生态 综合价值的深入理解。系统回顾墙壁生态研究代表性成果与前沿进展，将其发展历程划分为4个阶段：墙壁自生植物研究阶段(1597—1887年)、墙壁生境研究阶 段(1888—1968年)、墙壁生态系统研究阶段(1969—2010年)、墙壁多元价值研究阶段(2010年至今)，并明确了“墙壁”概念从功能单一的工程构造到承载复 杂生态过程、具有多元价值的城市生境的演化路径。在此基础上，构建了墙壁的分类框架，系统总结了其典型生态特征与多元价值，结合时代背景探讨了城市墙 壁面临的挑战与机遇，并提出了未来研究方向，旨在促进公众和学界对墙壁生态及其综合价值的关注，推动相关研究与实践的深入开展。

Abstract:

Wall ecology has become an important topic in urban habitat and urban ecology research, with a history of more than one hundred years. As an "unconventional and informal" urban habitat dominated by natural processes, walls provide a novel carrier for conserving urban biodiversity, building threedimensional ecological networks and creating vertical landscapes. However, both in China and abroad, the historical development of wall ecology and its conceptual foundations have not been systematically reviewed, which limits the comprehensive understanding and evaluation of wall habitats among the public and academia.This paper synthesizes representative and cuttingedge studies on wall ecology worldwide and suggests that the research history can be divided into four stages: 1) the phase of spontaneous wall flora surveys (1597-1887), when walls were merely regarded as man-made structures with occasional plants and research focused on floristic inventories; 2) the phase of wall habitat studies (1888-1968), during which walls began to be recognized as specific habitats and attention was paid to the physical structure and micro-environment shaping plant colonisation; 3) the phase of wall ecosystem research (1969-2010), when walls and their biotic communities were conceptualised as unique urban ecosystems and ecological processes such as succession, dispersal and environmental filtering were systematically addressed; 4) the phase of multiple-value exploration (2010-present), in which the concept of "wall ecology" was proposed and the ecological, social and economic values of walls have been investigated from interdisciplinary perspectives. On this basis, the paper clarifies the concept of "wall" and its evolution from a homogeneous background structure to a heterogeneous urban habitat with multiple values. Furthermore, a classification system of walls is constructed according to functional orientation, morphological features and spatial properties, including retaining walls, building walls, boundary walls, city walls and wall analogues. The typical ecological characteristics of wall habitats are then analysed in depth, such as extreme substrate and micro-climatic conditions, the dominance of natural processes, highly stochastic community assembly and successional pathways, and the role of walls as important reservoirs of urban biodiversity and providers of additional, abundant and usable ecological space. At the city scale, walls are highlighted as potential stepping stones and vertical corridors that enhance ecological connectivity within three-dimensional urban green networks. In light of ongoing urban transformation, the paper finally discusses the challenges and opportunities faced by urban walls. Key challenges include the negative public perception of spontaneous wall vegetation, concerns about structural safety and the risk of biological invasion, as well as the lack of appropriate management strategies. Emerging opportunities lie in recognising wall habitats as priority sites for urban rewilding, improving the three-dimensional urban landscape and integrating grey infrastructure into ecological planning. The paper proposes future research directions, such as comprehensive assessments of local wall biodiversity, mechanisms of community assembly and disturbance responses, quantification of the contribution of walls to urban ecological security patterns, development of technical frameworks for wall rewilding and the incorporation of wall ecology into urban green space system planning. Overall, this study aims to reveal the unique position of walls in urban environments and promote broader awareness and practice of wall ecology