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Volume 26 Number 2 June 2008 (in progress)

Editorial

Opportunities Found In a Worm Hole by Mrill Ingram

Society for Ecological Restoration International

Acting Outside of the Box by George Gann

Policy Report

What Does the Climate Security Act of 2007 have to do with Aquatic Restoration? by Malia Hale and Jennifer Heller

Restoration Notes

Differences in the Effects of Drought upon Restored and Remnant Prairies (Illinois) by Stuart K. Allison

Restoration in a Failed State: Community-Based Agroforestry in Haiti by Starry D. Sprenkle

Members of a Haitian community work with staff from Friends of Hôpital Albert Schweitzer, a group carrying out soil and forest restoration efforts in the region. The workers are placing stakes along the contour line of a hillside using a simple tool (Level A) that was constructed on-site from local materials. Micro-catchments for trees will be dug along the survey stakes. Photo by Starry Sprenkle

Does Biodiversity-Ecosystem Function Science Apply to Prairie Restoration? by Amy J. Symstad

Restoration of Soil Physical and Biological Stability Are Not Coupled in Response to Plants and Earthworms by Bryan S. Griffiths, Qin Liu, Huili Wang, Bin Zhang, Hsueh L. Kuan, Blair M. McKenzie, Paul D. Hallett, Roy Neilson and Tim J. Daniell

A GIS Application: Fire Line Location for Prescribed Burns (Texas) by Matt Crawford, Ernest B. Fish and Carlton M. Britton

Status of Russian Olive Biological Control in North America by Dan Bean, Andrew Norton, Roman Jashenko, Massimo Cristofaro and Urs Schaffner

A Lidar Approach to Evapotranspiration Estimation in Riparian Areas (New Mexico) by W. Eichinger, J. Prueger, D. Cooper, L. Hipps, C. Neale, H. Holder, S. Hanson and S. Bowser

Identifying Control Techniques for Rumex acetosella in the Presidio of San Francisco (California) by Mark Frey, Jennifer Soong, Jessica Feeser and Samuel Dishy

Efficacy of Different Glyphosate Concentrations in Managing Glossy Buckthorn (Frangula alnus) Resprouts (Michigan) by R. Gregory Corace III, Kenneth P. Leister and Erin Brosnan

Interseeding with and without Raking (Illinois) by Stephen Packard and Linda Masters

Articles

Recovering Nature by Thomas B. Simpson

Using Landscape Context to Guide Ecological Restoration: An Approach for Pits and Quarries in Ontario by Robert C. Corry, Raffaele Lafortezza, Robert D. Brown, Natasha Kenny and P. Jill Robertson

The landscape has a dramatic effect on a site's ecological and social function. Landscape context and pattern are important considerations in ecological restoration for their effects on rehabilitation design and ecological function. In Ontario, Canada, there are more than 5,300 active aggregate mining sites, equivalent to a total area of over 70 square kilometers. Rehabilitation of inactive pits is required by law, but rehabilitation efforts rarely attempt to restore ecological function to a site, and even more rarely consider the ecological implications of landscape context. The size, spatial extent, and nonrandom distribution of aggregate extraction sites in Ontario offer opportunities to restore ecological functions through cooperative rehabilitation, where landowners and licensed aggregate extractors try to achieve better ecological outcomes. In order to illustrate how landscape context can make a meaningful contribution to rehabilitation design and ecological restoration of pit and quarry sites in Ontario and in other settings, we review methods of assessing critical aspects of landscape context, including patterns of habitats (mosaics), interpatch movements and dispersal (connectivity and permeability), and the heterogeneity of microclimates (niche diversity). We illustrate the potential of this approach with the example of the Karner blue butterfly. The described project may inform restoration approaches for other land uses and landscape contexts.

Relocating Sensitive Mediterranean Climate Shrub Species by Brad Burkhart

We evaluated direct transplantation of the sensitive California adolphia (Adolphia californica) in southern California and relocation of this species by means of container plants propagated from similar genetic sources. Three years after planting, container plants had significantly higher rates of survival and only slightly lower rates of growth. The higher survival rate combined with the significantly lower cost of container plantings (transplantation is ten times more expensive owing to the labor and heavy equipment required to transplant mature plants) suggests that container propagation is a cost-effective technique for relocating deep-rooted, sensitive, Mediterranean climate shrub species. The author also shares general guidelines for relocating Mediterranean shrub and tree species.

An Experimental Approach to Testing the Efficacy of Management Treatments for Glossy Buckthorn at Seney National Wildlife Refuge, Upper Michigan by Linda M. Nagel, R. Gregory Corace III, and Andrew J. Storer

Glossy buckthorn (Frangula alnus) is an exotic invasive shrub within many Midwestern wetlands and adjacent ecotones, including those found in several National Wildlife Refuges. Where glossy buckthorn becomes established, it can form a dense homogenous monoculture, outcompete native shrubs, and alter other ecosystem processes. Active management of glossy buckthorn is critical to minimize the spread of this species, and to restore or rehabilitate those areas presently impacted. We tested the efficacy of herbiciding and scorching on glossy buckthorn survival. Treatments were implemented in concert with management efforts currently practiced at Seney National Wildlife Refuge in Upper Michigan. One year after applying 20% glyphosate to cut buckthorn stumps, we found no difference in resprout density between this concentration of herbicide applied by sponge to stumps, scorching stumps with a propane torch, or untreated controls (p > 0.05). Additional low-volume spraying of 5% glyphosate to resprouts the following year significantly (p < 0.001) reduced resprout density as compared to scorching and controls, with no difference between scorch treatments and the controls. Low-volume herbicide spraying reduced seedlings by 96% and 91% one and two years following treatment, with no difference in seedling density between scorching treatments and controls. The most effective management option for reducing glossy buckthorn appears to be repetitive herbicide application, possibly for more than two years.

Investing in Natural Capital and Economic Development: South Africa's Drakensberg Mountains by James Blignaut, James Aronson, Myles Mander and Christo Marais

The rugged beauty of the Drakensberg range in southern Africa is only one reason it is a UN World Heritage site. The Drakensbergs are also a cultural treasure, harboring over 600 Bushman (Khoisan) rock art painting sites. Photo by Myles Mander

We describe a proposed large-scale restoration and land use management project planned for a portion of the Drakensberg Mountains in South Africa. Some 250,000 ha of high-lying land in the Drakensberg range are a protected conservation area and also a World Heritage Site. Bordering this conservation enclave is another 250,000 ha of increasingly degraded land subject to a variety of competing land uses. Conflicting land use objectives could, in theory, be mitigated and reconciled by identifying and developing a market for the delivery of ecosystem services such as water use and quality, carbon sequestration, erosion and siltation reduction, combating desertification, and the promotion of biodiversity conservation. The project we describe here can serve as an example of how long-term investment in the restoration of natural capital (RNC) will benefit both developed and developing countries, with payment for ecosystem services as a key way to finance the restoration work. International investments in the Drakensberg project are being sought in emerging markets for carbon, water, and biodiversity credits-the so-called "umbrella ecosystem services." Food, water, energy, and income security for local people however remain top priorities. We argue that this kind of RNC project is a way to simultaneously pursue the objectives of the global conventions on Biodiversity, Climate Change, and Desertification arising from the United Nations' Rio Summit of 1992, and to help meet the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals for alleviating poverty.

Book Reviews

Restoring Natural Capital: Science, Business, and Practice. James Aronson, Suzanne J. Milton and James N. Blignaut, editors. 2007. Washington, DC: Island Press. Cloth, $90.00. ISBN: 978-1-59726-076-3. Paper, $45.00. ISBN: 978-1-59726-077-0. 384 pages. Reviewed by David Lamb

Habitat Fragmentation and Landscape Change: An Ecological and Conservation Synthesis. David B. Lindenmayer and Joern Fischer. 2006. Washington, DC: Island Press. Cloth $80.00, ISBN: 1-59726-020-7. Paper, $39.95. ISBN:1-59726-021-5. 352 pages. Reviewed by John A. Bissonette

Voices from the Forest: Integrating Indigenous Knowledge into Sustainable Upland Farming. Malcolm Cairns, editor. 2007. Washington, DC: Resources for the Future Press. Cloth, $100.00. ISBN: 978-1-891853-91-3. Paper, $50.00. ISBN 978-1-891853-92-0. 800 pages. Reviewed by Dennis Martinez

The Law and Policy of Ecosystem Services. J.B. Ruhl, Steven E. Kraft, and Christopher L. Lant. 2007. Washington, DC: Island Press. Paper, $35.00. ISBN: 1-55963-095-7. 360 pages. Reviewed by Robert Costanza