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Ecological Restoration
Volume 25 Number 2 June 2007
Editorial
Weaving Things Together by Mrill Ingram
Society for Ecological Restoration International
Living in the Present, Searching for the Past, Planning for the Future by Keith Bowers
Articles
Lessons from an Urban Lakeshore Restoration Project in New York City by Shannon L. Galbraith-Kent and Steven N. Handel
Wetlands, uplands and turtle habitat were targets for a 1995 restoration of 488 m of a lakeshore in Flushing Meadows Corona
Park in New York City. Approximately 25,000 plants (native species of grasses, herbs, shrubs, and trees) were introduced and
intensively monitored through 1997 and monitored periodically until 2003. Vegetation was not managed during this time. While
biodiversity and habitat complexity goals were achieved for wildlife, few elements of the initial plantings persist.
Invasive species (common reed (Phragmites australis), purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), common wormwood (Artemisia
vulgaris)) are abundant in both uplands and wetlands. The larger upland parcels and larger (and deeper) wetlands supported
more planted species and were more resistant to the spread of invasive species. Many of the original plantings were
destroyed due to arson, theft, and lack of management.
Tropical Rainforest Restoration in Far North Queensland (Photo Essay) by Steve Glass
The Role of Disturbance in Habitat Restoration and Management for the Eastern Regal Fritillary, Speyeria idalia idalia, at a Military Installation in Pennsylvania by Roger Earl Latham, Deanna Zercher, Patrick McElhenny, Peter Mooreside and Betty Ferster
We observed and manipulated habitat for a remnant population of the eastern regal fritillary, Speyeria idalia idalia, at
Fort Indiantown Gap, an Army National Guard installation in Pennsylvania. Three years of study indicate that the key
elements of regal fritillary habitat (larval host plants, adult nectar sources, and adult resting sites) depend on severe
disturbance to soils and vegetation. Training activity (military tracked vehicles and fire) maintained populations of larval
host plants (violets) more effectively than combinations of light soil scarification, mowing, and removal of mowed biomass.
In addition, plantings of nectar species (milkweeds and thistles) grew best on wetter sites after applying a non-selective
herbicide (glyphosate), although herbiciding may be unnecessary on uplands. Because the required larval food and adult
nectar and resting sites persist only with recurring disturbance, a practical, biologically effective, and essentially
permanent program of disturbance is needed to sustain the population at Fort Indiantown Gap.
Saving the "Green Corridor." Recharging Groundwater to Restore Riparian Forest Along the Lower Tarim River, China by Yongbo Liu, Yaning Chen, Mingjiang Deng
Recovery of a "green corridor" in the lower Tarim River is underway, following extensive agricultural development and
irrigation beginning in the 1950s that lowered water tables in the river basin and killed native willow poplar or Euphrates
poplar (Populus euphratica) trees. In 2000, a groundwater recharge project began to restore vegetation in the green
corridor. After seven water discharges (diverted from a nearby lake), groundwater rose from 6 meters to 2 meters near
Taitema Lake and vegetation began to recover. The overall restoration of the green corridor and the Tarim River depends on
long-term, comprehensive management of the river basin. The main hydrological challenges are to mitigate water loss through
seepage and evaporation by improving structures such as dikes, water gates, and irrigation canals. Management efforts should
also consider river regulation, optimal water allocation, water conservation, water price policy, and grassland improvement,
rather than just water transfers.
Does the Number of Species in a Seed Mix Affect the Establishment of Four Tallgrass Prairie Species? A Seven-Year Study in Kansas by Jon K. Piper
Interactions among component plant species during establishment can affect restoration outcomes. In a seven-year study, I
tested the effect of seed mixes of varied species identity and richness on the rate of establishment and spread of four
native prairie species: little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium), Canada wildrye (Elymus canadensis), purple prairie
clover (Dalea purpurea), and purple coneflower (Echinacea angustifolia). Percentage cover of species differed among years,
but there were no effects of seeding as monocultures vs. treatments of 1-15 additional native prairie species. By the sixth
year, mean cover of little bluestem peaked at 39 percent and Canada wildrye cover peaked at 25 percent, but purple prairie
clover and purple coneflower never exceeded 4 percent cover. Canada wildrye, however, showed a treatment by year interaction
in which its cover was lower within the most species-rich treatments in years five through seven. For some prairie species,
the number of species added to the seed mix may make no apparent difference to establishment and persistence. For others,
Canada wildrye, for example, sowing the species in species-rich mixtures may negatively effect establishment.
How Incomplete Exotic Species Management Can Make Matters Worse:
Experiments in Forest Restoration in Ontario, Canada by Stephen D. Murphy, Jay Flanagan, Kevin Noll, Dana Wilson, and Bruce Duncan
Funding for ecological restoration efforts sometimes ends prematurely and exacerbates problems that were the rationale for
the project. In our test of methods to manage exotic species, we mimicked this real world situation and compared management
after one year with no ecological restoration with exotic species management continued yearly for five years and followed by
ecological restoration (transplanting adult plants of four native species) in year five. Our study site in Ontario, Canada
consisted of eight fragmented woodlots dominated by sugar maple (Acer saccharum) and American beech (Fagus grandifolia) and
supporting dense populations of the exotic species garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), dame's rocket (Hesperis matronalis),
and celandine (Chelidonium majus). In 1998, we quantified the impact and duration of one-time use of glyphosate,
hand-pulling, inflorescence clipping, and mulch on the seedbank and shoots of three exotic species, native herbaceous
species, and (for shoots, non-adult) native species of shrubs and trees. By 2006, above- and belowground densities of exotic
species significantly increased and native species significantly decreased with one-time treatments of glyphosate and
hand-pulling (ANOVA). The exotic species recovered quickly from one-time application of glyphosate, and hand-pulling
disturbed the soil and increased relative emergence of exotic species from seed. As expected, inflorescence clipping and
mulching were ineffective as one-time treatments but did not worsen the exotic species problem or decrease native species'
densities. The repeated management plus ecological restoration was more successful in all cases, with similar results by
2006, while one-time application of glyphosate and hand-pulling worsened problems. We caution that initiating exotic species
management can be risky if funding is not secure enough to support longer term efforts.
Impacts of initial species richness and deer browsing on the quality of restored prairie in central Illinois by Roger C. Anderson, Brad Dorick, and Teresa Crispino
A 0.5-ha Illinois prairie was restored in 1988. By 2005 the site increased in traits indicative of high quality remnant
prairies. Weighted Mean Fidelity and the proportion of native species increased over time. Exotic weeds (e.g. smooth brome,
dandelion, black medic, and Kentucky bluegrass) became less frequent and high quality species (purple coneflower, purple
prairie clover, stiff goldenrod, and rattlesnake master) increased in frequency. After deer hunting was allowed in 1994,
stiff goldenrod and rosinweed had smaller proportions of their stems browsed by deer. Mean Coefficient of Conservatism was
similar to a local high quality remnant prairie.
Notes
A Comparison of the Influence of Disturbance Regimes on Native Forbs (Kansas) by Quinn Long and Kelly Kindscher
Nuisance, Exotic, and Non-Listed Aquatic Species Found in Mitigated Wetlands at Phosphate Mines (Florida) by Matt S. Wilson, Christine M. Keenan and Orlando E. Rivera
Creation of Interconnected Potholes in a Cattail Marsh to Enhance Bird Habitat (New York) by Mei-Yin Wu and Kenneth Adams
Effects of Riparian Restoration on Abundances of Small Mammal Agricultural Pest Species (California) by Gregory H. Golet
, Gregg Werner, Raymond J. Bogiatto, John W. Hunt and David Koenig
Restoration Potential of Submerged Aquatic Vegetation in the Tidal Pocomoke River (Chesapeake Bay) by Julie M. Baldizar and Nancy B. Rybicki
Investigating the Rapid Spread of Invasive Knotweed in a Riparian Setting (Washington) by Melisa L. Holman, Peter W. Dunwiddie and Robert G. Carey
Butter Knife Helps Deter Aspen on Curtis Prairie (Wisconsin) by Steve Glass
Please click here to see how to make this tool
Rivercane Restoration Project: Recovering an Ecologically and Culturally Significant Species (North Carolina) by Adam Griffith, Katie McDowell and Robert S. Young
Seeding Native Groundcover Species Benefits Growth and Survival of Tree Seedlings at Surface Mine Site (Tennessee) by John Rizza, Jennifer A. Franklin and David S. Buckley
Book Reviews
Foundations of Restoration Ecology.
Donald A. Falk, Margaret A. Palmer and Joy B. Zedler, editors. 2006. Washington, DC: Island Press. Cloth, $90. ISBN: 1-59726-016-9. Paper, $45. ISBN: 1-59726-017-7 364 . 365 pages. Review by Peter Bowler
The Longleaf Pine Ecosystem: Ecology, Silviculture, and Restoration.
Shibu Jose, Eric J. Jokela and Deborah L. Miller, editors. 2006. New York: Springer Cloth $125. ISBN: 0-387-29655-7. 438 pages. Review by William J. Platt
Forest Restoration in Landscapes: Beyond Planting Trees.
Stephanie Mansourian, Daniel Vallauri and Nigel Dudley, editors. 2005. New York: Springer (In cooperation with WWF International). Cloth, $49.95 (39.95 euros). ISBN 0-387-25525-7. 437 pages. Review by Anton Fischer
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