Synanthrope

A synanthrope (from the Greek syn-, "together with" + anthro, "man") is a member of a species of wild animals and plants of various kinds that live near, and benefit from, an association with humans and the somewhat artificial habitats that humans create around them (see anthropophilia). Those habitats include houses, gardens, farms, roadsides, garbage dumps, and so on.

The category of synanthrope includes a large number of what humans regard as pest species. It does not include domesticated animals such as cattle, goats and dogs.

Examples of synanthropes are rodents, house sparrows, rock doves (pigeons), lice, and other urban wildlife.

Botany

In plants, synanthropes are classified into two main types - apophytes and anthropophytes.

Apophytes are synanthropic species that are native in origin. They can be subdivided into the following:

• Cultigen apophytes - spread by cultivation methods
• Ruderal apophytes - spread by development of marginal areas
• Pyrophyte apophytes - spread by fires
• Zoogen apophytes - spread by grazing animals
• Substitution apophytes - spread by logging or voluntary extension

Anthropophytes are synanthropic species of foreign origin, whether introduced voluntarily or involuntarily. They can be subdivided into the following:

• Archaeophytes - introduced before the end of the 15th century
• Kenophytes - introduced after the 15th century
• Ephemerophytes - anthropophytic plants that appear episodically
• Subspontaneous - voluntarily introduced plants that have escaped cultivation and survived in the wild without further human intervention for a certain period.
• Adventive - involuntarily introduced plants that have escaped cultivation and survived in the wild without further human intervention for a certain period.
• Naturalized or Neophytes - involuntarily introduced plants that now appears to thrive along with the native flora indefinitely.

See also

• Urban wildlife