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161 results for “forest restoration”

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Do early-successional weeds facilitate or compete with seedlings in forest restoration? Disentangling abiotic vs. biotic factors

Census data for seedlings part of a weed exclusion experiment at Sal del Rey, Texas within a larger field where ~100,000 seedlings were planted in October-November 2018. Records seedling height, vigor (0 - dead, > 0 - alive), branching, and animal damage for 158 individuals of eight species classified by growth habit (fast/slow) and distributed in control and exclusion (mowed) plots across seven censuses.

opencc-zeroJul 2021View details →

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Beyond species richness and community composition: Using plant functional diversity to measure restoration success in jarrah forest

Aim: The importance of restoring ecosystem functions to native systems that have been degraded, damaged or destroyed is increasingly recognised. Yet few studies have measured the effect of restoration efforts on ecosystem functioning or the functional diversity (FD) that underpins it. Here we assessed change in FD of restored assemblages one to 25 years after the onset of post-mine restoration. Location: Northern Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata Donn ex Sm.) Forest bioregion of south-western Australia. Methods: Functional richness, evenness, divergence and dispersion were derived from five plant functional traits relevant to community reassembly. Effects of three explanatory variables (i.e., age, year restoration was initiated, and time since fire) on six response variables (i.e., four FD indices, species richness, and compositional similarity to nearby reference forest) were analysed using linear mixed models for a dataset with repeated measures of plots through time (n= 810 plots), and linear models for a sub-set of one-time measures of different aged assemblages (i.e., space-for-time approach; n= 490 plots). Results: Functional evenness and functional dispersion increased with age, while functional divergence and functional richness decreased with age. Functional dispersion increased with time since fire, while functional richness decreased with time since fire. Species richness decreased with age, but at 25-years, species richness was comparable to that observed in reference forest. In contrast, similarity showed no relationship with age of restored forest, and at 25-years, similarity of restored forest to reference was low compared with similarity of reference forest to itself. Three of four FD indices had not reached those of reference jarrah forest 25-years after restoration had been initiated. Conclusions: Reassembly of FD suggests importance of environmental filtering and high functional redundancy. A longer time frame may be needed to assess FD of restored assemblages, and in the meantime, species richness is not an adequate surrogate of FD.

opencc-zeroAug 2021View details →

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Data for: Barriers to seedling establishment in grasslands: Implications for Nothofagus forest restoration and migration

Tree seedling establishment outside forest boundaries is controlled by many interacting factors. Understanding the relative importance of different pressures is essential for improving techniques for forest restoration and for understanding the potential of forest boundaries to shift and adapt to changing climate conditions. We investigated constraints on the spread of a key southern hemisphere forest type into grasslands by undertaking a multi-factorial experiment sowing Nothofagus cliffortioides (Nothofagaceae) in a historically deforested retired pasture. We manipulated factors to determine the relative effects of sheltered microsites, competition with pasture species, availability of ectomycorrhizal fungi, soil nutrients, and rabbit herbivory, on seedling emergence and survival. Overall survival was low (11.7% after six months and 1.5% after ten months), but there were strong treatment effects on both seedling establishment and survival. The availability of shelter and competition with pasture species had strongest effects, with the presence of pasture species initially aiding seedling emergence due to a sheltering effect, but negatively affecting survival at later stages. Most remaining seedlings at the conclusion of the experiment had formed ectomycorrhizae regardless of whether inoculum was supplied, and seedling survival and health was positively related to ectomycorrhizal colonization. Fertilizing had less of an effect than other factors, and results regarding rabbit herbivory were inconclusive. Synthesis and applications: This study provides new insights into how factors interact to limit tree seedling establishment in grasslands and forest expansion into neighboring ecosystems. This improves understanding of the ability of an ectomycorrhizal keystone forest species to migrate and adapt to climate change. This study also assists restoration practitioners in selecting techniques that will enhance seedling establishment, and highlights that direct seeding approaches in open grasslands are unlikely to result in high rates of Nothofagus establishment.

opencc-zeroNov 2022View details →

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Functional-trait based restoration alters nutrient cycling and invasion rates in Hawaiian lowland wet forest

Many degraded ecosystems have altered nutrient dynamics, due to invaders possessing a suite of traits that allow them to both outcompete native species and alter the environment. In ecosystems where invasive species have increased nutrient turnover rates, it can be difficult to reduce nutrient availability. This study examined whether a functional-trait-based restoration approach, involving the planting of species with conservative nutrient-use traits, can slow rates of nutrient cycling and consequently reduce rates of invasion. We examined a functional trait restoration initiative in a heavily-invaded lowland wet forest site in Hilo, Hawai'i. Native and introduced species were chosen to create four experimental hybrid forest communities, in comparison to the invaded forest, with a factorial design in which communities varied in rates of carbon turnover (slow or moderate [SLOW, MOD]), and in the relationship of species in trait space (redundant or complementary [RED, COMP]). After the first five years, we evaluated community-level outcomes related to nutrient cycling: carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) via litterfall, litter decomposition, and also outplant productivity and rates of invasion. We found that: (1) regardless of treatment, the experimental communities had low rates of nutrient cycling through litterfall relative to the invaded reference forest, (2) the MOD communities had greater nutrient release via litterfall than the SLOW communities, (3) introduced species had greater nutrient release than native species in the two MOD experimental communities, and (4) within treatments, there was a positive relationship between nutrient levels and outplant basal area, but outplant basal area was negatively associated with rates of invasion. The negative relationships among basal area and weed invasion, particularly for the two COMP treatments, suggest species existing in different parts of trait space may help confer some degree of invasion resistance. The diversification of trait space was facilitated by the use of introduced species; a new concept in Hawaiian forest management. Although challenges remain in endeavors to restore this heavily degraded ecosystem, this study provides evidence that functional trait-based restoration approaches using carefully crafted hybrid communities can reduce rates of nutrient cycling and invasion in order to reach management goals.

opencc-zeroJun 2023View details →

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Forest restoration treatments indirectly diversify pollination networks via floral- and temperature-mediated effects

In North American conifer forests a variety of federally initiated thinning programs are implemented to restore pre-European settlement forest structures, but these changes may impact ecosystem function via impacts on sensitive biotic communities. Across the wildland-urban interface of the Front Range region of Colorado, agencies associated with the 'Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program' (CFLRP) have implemented thinning treatments across thousands of hectares of ponderosa pine forest; here we leverage these treatments as an experimental framework to examine thinning effects on a pollinator community. We measured variation in forest structure and sampled bee community assemblages using multiple methods (trapping and netting) to compare bee biodiversity and patterns of floral visitation by bees (bee-flower networks) between mechanically thinned stands that were 3–10 years post-treatment and non-thinned stands. Three key findings emerged: (1) Native bee abundance, richness, and diversity were 120, 53, and 37% greater, respectively, in thinned stands. Nestedness, richness, and abundance of bee-flower interactions were all substantially higher in thinned stands, and there was increased functional redundancy in bee assemblages after thinning. (2) Structural equation modelling indicated that variation in temperature and floral abundance were mediated by canopy openness and were correlated with bee richness and abundance, thereby indirectly driving variation in bee-flower interactions. (3) Four floral species (Penstemon virens, Cerastium arvense, Erysimum capitatum, and Geranium caespitosum) were identified as key connectors in bee-flower interaction networks, though these were not necessarily the most abundant flowering plants. Our analyses indicate that native bee α-diversity and bee-flower interactions positively responded to thinning treatments, and these effects were indirectly driven by canopy removal. We conclude that CFLRP treatments have conservation value for native bee communities. Further monitoring is warranted to evaluate the longevity of these effects.

opencc-zeroSep 2023View details →

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Climate change accelerates ecosystem restoration in the mountain forests of Central Europe

<ol> <li>Restoring degraded forest ecosystems is an important element in the ongoing challenge to sustain the integrity and functioning of the biosphere. However, the evaluation of restoration success is hampered by long lead times of management measures in forests. Moreover, forest change is accelerating in the absence of management because of ongoing climate change. Yet, because a counterfactual is frequently missing, it remains unclear whether restoration measures are aided or impeded by climate change. </li> <li>Here, we analyzed the pace and success of forest restoration under climate change, combining field data and simulation modelling. We focused on the management zone of Berchtesgaden National Park (BGNP), Germany, where restoration aims to restore homogeneous Norway spruce (Picea abies) forests to structurally diverse mixed mountain forests. We evaluated three alternative restoration strategies: Two active strategies focused on planting the currently underrepresented silver fir (Abies alba) and European beech (Fagus sylvatica) but differing in the creation of gap-cuts, and a third passive restoration strategy without interventions. Strategies were simulated with the forest landscape model iLand from 2020 to 2100 under different climate scenarios (historic, RCP 2.6, 4.5, and 8.5).</li> <li>The forests of BGNP developed into structurally diverse and mixed forests under all evaluated management strategies, and differences between active and passive restoration were generally small. While restoration goals for forest structure were largely met by 2100, forest composition remained far from target in all strategies. Climate change aided restoration by significantly increasing the prevalence of silver fir and European beech (+104.2 % to +258.6 %). Field data on short-term restoration effects were in line with simulated long-term trajectories.</li> <li> Synthesis and applications. We here show that forest restoration efforts in Central European mountain forests will likely be accelerated by climate change. Nonetheless, the slow pace of restoration underscores the need for taking action. Our study highlights that active restoration measures such as tree planting can bring the system closer to restoration targets. However, it also demonstrates that passive restoration (no intervention) is a viable option for management, highlighting the need to evaluate restoration measures against the counterfactual of a no-intervention strategy.</li> </ol>

opencc-zeroOct 2023View details →

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