The Big Apple and Beyond: Challenges and Successes of Habitat Restoration in the Long Island Sound Watershed by
Heather Young,
Larissa Graham and
Victoria
Ruzicka
Restoring oyster beds in the Bronx River as part of the "Fish and Shellfish Habitat Creation and Seeding Project." From left to right: Chris Squire (Bronx River Alliance-Conservation Crew Member), Janine Harris (NYC Department of Parks & Recreation's Natural Resources Group-Project Associate), Josue Garcia (Rocking the Boat-On the Water Job Skills Apprentice), and Frances Knickmeyer
(Bronx River Alliance-Conservation Crew Member). Photo courtesy of NYC Parks & Recreation.
An Evaluation of Fencing to Challenge Emergent Plant Herbivory (Minnesota) by
William M. Bartodziej, Simba L. Blood, Paul W. Erdmann and Thomas F. Shevlin
Survival and Restoration Potential of Beaked Sedge (Carex utriculata) in Grazed Riparian Meadows of the Southern Sierra Nevada (California) by
Daniel A. Sarr and Tom L. Dudley
Seeding as Part of Forest Restoration Promotes Native Species Establishment in Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument (Arizona) by
Mark L. Daniels, Judith D. Springer, Christopher M. McGlone and Aaron Wilkerson
Reed Canarygrass Invasions Alter Succession Patterns and May Reduce Habitat Quality in Wet Meadows by
Craig A. Annen, Eileen M. Kirsch and Robin W. Tyser
Impacts of Non-native Plant Removal on Vertebrates along the Middle Rio Grande (New Mexico) by Heather L. Bateman, Alice Chung-MacCoubrey, Deborah M. Finch, Howard L. Snell and David L. Hawksworth
Influence of Floristic Diversity on Songbird Nesting Preferences in a Suite of Adjacent Reconstructed Grasslands (Wisconsin) by
Shawn P. Schottler, Jeff Port and Teresa DeGolier
An Efficient Method for Quickly Surveying Pheasant Nesting Site Preferences by
Shawn P. Schottler, Jeff Port and Teresa DeGolier
The Contribution of the Latin American and Caribbean Community to a Global Restoration Action by
Francisco A. Comín
Community-Based Agroforestry as Restoration: The Haiti Timber Re-Introduction Project Methods and Framework by
Starry D. Sprenkle
Costs of Reforesting Roads in a Boreal Environment (Finland) by
Oili Tarvainen, Emilie Dupuy and Anne Tolvanen
Portraits of Grasses:
A Story of Art and Restoration from the
Apache Highlands Ecoregion by
Matilda Essig
Detail, Annual Grama (Bouteloua barbata) head, Deming NM, 10/3/2007, by Matilda Essig. Digital capture. Actual scale of total seedhead specimen: 1 cm.
Ecological restoration is a cultural choice. I understand our world to be in a crisis of perception: we see ourselves as separate
or somehow independent from the natural world. As an artist and a restorationist, I have always sought to foster a sense of reconnection between human culture and the natural world. I try to help people see how, even in the face of dramatic ecological damage, our individual actions will make a difference. Part of the answer is to return to the source with the tools of the future. Through my art, and specifically the imaging of biodiversity, I work to let the life forms of nature express their own beauty, their character, diversity, adaptation, and resilience. For me, this is also work to restore the role of art as visionary vehicle in human civilization.
Ecological Restoration Calls for a
New Kind of Language by
Sally Collins and
Hutch Brown
In recent years, national forest managers have increasingly practiced ecological restoration in collaboration with local communities. However, in communicating with the public about proposed projects, U.S. Forest Service employees tend to use the technical language of silviculture. Such language is difficult for lay audiences to understand; moreover, because it originated in a timber culture, it can cause confusion about a restoration project's true purpose. For collaboration to work and restoration to succeed in public lands, a new kind of language is needed; one that more clearly communicates the intended purpose of ecological restoration. In this article, we explore the kind of language typically used in national forest management and the need for something new.
Fighting with Fire: Restoring Montane Grasslands and Controlling Melilotus in Rocky Mountain National Park by
Joy J. Wolf
In the montane grasslands of Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, non-native plant species are affecting the distribution
and cover of native plant species. Two exotic nitrogen-fixing Eurasian sweetclover species (Melilotus officinalis and M. alba) occur in patches that have less available nitrogen (N) and a species composition different from surrounding
grassland patches. I tested whether burning sweetclover-invaded patches would increase native grass and perennial diversity and available soil nitrogen at this elevation. I burned 24 sweetclover-invaded and noninvaded field plots with a propane torch in May 1999. Burning increased species richness and ground cover. Specifically, one year later native, grass, and perennial species increased in previously invaded patches and sweetclover or other exotic species associated with sweetclover did not increase. Soil ammonium (NH4+) levels increased immediately after the burn in May, and nitrate (NO3-) levels increased later in July and August. New species appeared only in burned plots. While other methods to reduce sweetclover might remove resources, fire increases light, space, and nutrient availability for native species that, in turn, suppress the exotic species.
Inclusive Planning of Urban Nature by
Allegra Newman
As North American cities become increasingly diverse, urban ecological restoration needs to adopt a culturally inclusive framework. Using a review of urban ecological restoration literature, inclusive planning literature, and primary research collected from research in the City of Toronto, I examine ecological restoration efforts and offer recommendations for how urban ecological restoration can become responsive to the increasing racial diversity in North American cities.
Ecological Benchmarking in an
Urbanized Estuarine River System by
Joseph K. Shisler,
Timothy J. Iannuzzi
, David F. Ludwig and Paul J. Bluestein
The Lower Passaic River (LPR), from the Dundee Dam to its confluence 17 miles (26 km) downstream with Newark Bay, has suffered severe degradation as a result of extensive urbanization and industrialization. A variety of restoration opportunities
for the LPR have been posited by private and government entities; however, a comprehensive understanding of the LPR's ecological system is a necessary prerequisite to effective restoration planning. Key to restoration of an urban system are an understanding of the constraints imposed by the urban environment and a commitment to integrate this knowledge into restoration planning. The goal of our work was to characterize and quantify the physical and ecological attributes, referred to as "benchmarks," of various wetland and aquatic habitats that exist in the LPR. Ecological benchmarking
allows restoration planners to comprehensively assess the environmental conditions of the system, analyze the physical and ecological factors influencing habitat development within the system, and learn from habitats that have succeeded despite prevailing constraints and conditions. Benchmarking provides an effective method for evaluating the potential scope for restoration within the system and for developing achievable criteria for success, taking into account both the ecological qualities of the watershed and the limitations of the urban setting. By including historical conditions as well as information from other ecosystems in the region, benchmarking can also be expanded to capture a larger universe of potential restoration objectives. Our work included a combination of literature reviews and field reconnaissance
conducted in October 2005. From these activities, a preliminary conceptual framework and habitat matrix were developed to provide a foundation for evaluating potential restoration projects proposed for the LPR.
Developing an Ecological Restoration Management Plan: John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge, Philadelphia by
Dan J. Salas
Planning is the first step toward efficient ecosystem restoration. Friends of the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was awarded funding through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation's Delaware Estuary
Grant Program to develop a restoration plan for the lower reaches of Darby Creek, which runs through the refuge. Managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the refuge was established by an act of Congress in 1972 to protect the last 81 hectares of freshwater tidal marsh in Pennsylvania. The Delaware Riverkeeper Network was hired in 2005 to carry out an integrated planning effort. The resulting Restoration Management Plan for the Lower Darby Creek, completed in May 2006, combined historical research, aerial photo and map analysis, personal interviews, stakeholder feedback, field research, and data management. The creation of the plan offers a case study to inform other restoration planning efforts for large, diverse areas.
Restoring Ecological Functions and Increasing Community Awareness of an Urban Tidal Pond Using Blue Mussels by
Sean McDermott,
David Burdick,
Raymond Grizzle and
Jennifer Greene
Blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) were transplanted into South Mill Pond, a degraded tidal salt pond in Portsmouth, NH. As part of a larger community-based project volunteers helped create three mussel reefs in each of two locations within the pond in May 2001. Restoration project methodology and success were evaluated during the summer of 2001 and again in May 2002 by 1) assessing reef population dynamics (size frequency distribution, density, and movement) and 2) comparing faunal utilization (finfish species and abundance) within the reefs to that in adjacent reference areas. Created reefs showed declines in density after the first month but then increased and showed new recruitment the following year. Reef footprints were dynamic and probably influenced by mussel density as well as local hydrology. Four finfish species were observed: Atlantic silverside (Menidia menidia), mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus), four-spined stickleback (Apeltes quadracus), and three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). The most common fish in reef and reference areas (silverside and mummichog, respectively) are highly mobile species. Reef areas had greater species diversity per sampling effort than reference areas, but no difference in overall fish abundance was found between adjacent reef and reference areas. Information collected to date indicates that mussel reefs constructed at the pond appear to be functioning as a natural system, acting to improve water quality and provide shelter for small fish and other nektonic and epibenthic invertebrates. In addition, volunteer action garnered city involvement and increased local awareness of the pond as an ecosystem rather than a sewage lagoon. Community awareness along with habitat improvements will increase the
long-term prospects for rehabilitation of South Mill Pond.
Rivertown: Rethinking Urban Rivers.
Paul Stanton Kibel, editor. 2007. Cambridge: The MIT Press. Cloth, $55.00. ISBN: 978-0-262-11307-6. Paper, $22.00. ISBN: 978-0-262-61219-7. 232 pages.
Reviewed by Anne Taufen Wessells
MetroGreen: Connecting Open Space in North American Cities.
Donna Erickson. 2006. Washington DC: Island Press. Cloth, $70. ISBN: 1-55963-843-5. 350 pages. Paper, $35. ISBN: 1-55963-891-5. 352 pages.
Reviewed by Kara A. Whittaker
Cities as Sustainable Ecosystems:
Principles and Practices.
Peter Newman and Isabella Jennings. 2008. Washington DC: Island Press. Paper, $35.00. ISBN: 978-1-59726-188-3. 296 pages.
Reviewed by Christopher Boone
The Conservation Professional's Guide to Working with People.
Scott A. Bonar. 2007. Washington DC: Island Press. Cloth, $50. ISBN: 1-59726-147-5. Paper, $25. ISBN: 1-59726-148-3. 224 pages.
Reviewed by Heather K. Catuzo
No Way Home: The Decline of the World's Great Animal Migrations.
David S. Wilcove. 2007. Washington DC: Island Press. Cloth, $24.95 ISBN: 1-55963-985-7. 256 pages.
Reviewed by Joy B. Zedler
