Wild animal or plant that lives near and benefits from people
A synanthrope (from ancient Greek σύν sýn "together, with" and ἄνθρωπος ánthrōpos "man") is an organism that lives near and benefits from humans and their environmental modifications (see also anthropophilia for animals who live close to humans as parasites). The term synanthrope includes many species regarded as pests or weeds, but does not include domesticated animals.[1] Common synanthrope habitats include houses, gardens, farms, parks, roadsides and rubbish dumps.
The brown rat is counted as one of the most prominent synanthropic animals and can be found in almost every place there are people.[7][8]
Botany
Synanthropic plants include pineapple weed, dandelion, chicory, and plantain. Plant 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:[9]
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 appear to thrive along with the native flora indefinitely.
^Flores, Dan (September 2017). "Chapter 6: Bright Lights, Big Cities". Coyote America: A Natural & Supernatural History. Basic Books. p. 193. ISBN978-0-465-09372-4.
^Sofaer HR, Flather CH, Jarnevich CS, Davis KP, Pejchar L. Human-associated species dominate passerine communities across the United States. Global Ecol Biogeogr. 2020;29:885–895. doi:10.1111/ geb.13071