An integrated social–ecological–evolutionary–phenotypic (SEEP) approach to understanding animal responses to urbanization

Humans play key roles in shaping the structure and processes of ecosystems globally, especially in cities. This recognition has prompted a recent focus on understanding urban systems via interactions between human social systems and ecological and evolutionary processes. Most research has focused on interactions between two of these three domains. Here we present a framework for linking all three – social, ecological, and evolutionary – by focusing on phenotypic response and effect traits, illustrating the framework's utility in understanding wildlife dynamics in urban systems. We first present a generalized model for the social–ecological–evolutionary–phenotypic (SEEP) framework, then use urban climate as a specific example, provide guidance on how to implement this approach, and finally discuss emerging questions motivated by the framework and challenges in utilizing the approach.