The rapid expansion of urban areas worldwide is leading to native habitat loss and ecosystem fragmentation and degradation. Although the study of urbanisation’s impact on biodiversity is gaining increasing interest globally, there is still a disconnect between research recommendations and urbanisation strategies. Expansion of the Perth metropolitan area on the Swan Coastal Plain in south-western Australia, one of the world’s thirty-six biodiversity hotspots, continues to affect the Banksia Woodlands (BWs) ecosystem, a federally listed Threatened Ecological Community (TEC). Here, we utilise the framework of a 1989 review of the state of knowledge of BWs ecology and conservation to examine scientific advances made in understanding the composition, processes and functions of BWs and BWs’ species over the last 30 years. We highlight key advances in our understanding of the ecological function and role of mechanisms in BWs that are critical to the management of this ecosystem. The most encouraging change since 1989 is the integration of research between historically disparate ecological disciplines. We outline remaining ecological knowledge gaps and identify key research priorities to improve conservation efforts for this TEC. We promote a holistic consideration of BWs with our review providing a comprehensive document that researchers, planners and managers may reference. To effectively conserve ecosystems threatened by urban expansion, a range of stakeholders must be involved in the development and implementation of best practices to conserve and maintain both biodiversity and human wellbeing.

世界范围内城市地区的迅速扩张导致本地生境的丧失以及生态系统的破碎和退化。尽管对城市化对生物多样性影响的研究在全球范围内越来越受到关注，但研究建议与城市化策略之间仍然存在脱节。澳大利亚西南部的天鹅海岸平原上的珀斯都会区的扩张是世界上三十六个生物多样性热点之一，该地区的发展继续影响着联邦政府列入威胁的生态共同体（TEC）的班克西亚森林（BWs）生态系统。在这里，我们利用1989年对BW的生态学和保护知识状况进行回顾的框架，来研究在了解BW和BW物种在过去30年中的组成，过程和功能方面取得的科学进步。我们着重指出了我们对BW中的生态功能和机制的作用的理解方面的关键进展，这些作用对生态系统的管理至关重要。自1989年以来最令人鼓舞的变化是历史上不同的生态学科之间的研究整合。我们概述了剩余的生态知识差距，并确定了关键研究重点，以改善该TEC的保护工作。我们通过审查来促进对BW的整体考虑，并提供研究人员，规划人员和管理人员可以参考的全面文档。为了有效地保护受到城市扩张威胁的生态系统，必须使一系列利益相关者参与最佳实践的开发和实施，以保护和维护生物多样性和人类福祉。