Practical Technique to Manage Smooth Sumac and Maintain Prairie Biodiversity (Nebraska) by
James Stubbendieck and Robert A. Masters
Effects of Fuel-Reduction Treatments on Pollinators in a Pinyon-Juniper Woodland (Arizona) by
Susan Nyoka
Germination and Survival of Tree Seeds in a Tropical Montane Forest Restoration Study (Costa Rica) by
Gabriel C. Sady, Karen D. Holl, Rebecca J. Cole and Rakan A. Zahawi
Ponderosa Pine Understory Response to Short-Term Grazing Exclusion (Arizona) by
Christopher D. Sorensen and Christopher M. McGlone
Seed Self-Burial, Germination, and Seedling Survival for a Species with Hygroscopic Awns (Illinois) by
Brenda Molano-Flores, Clark A. Danderson and Kirtan Patel
Lessons Learned: Managing Biological Invasion on Hemlock Hill (Massachusetts) by
Richard Schulhof
Restoring Biodiversity by Lowering Deer Numbers at Shawnee Lookout (Ohio) by
John Klein and Denis Conover
Smooth Brome: An Unexpected Response to Straw-Amended Soil (Alberta) by
Peggy Ann Desserud and M. Anne Naeth
Seed Propagation Protocol for Wigeongrass (Ruppia maritima) (Mississippi) by
Hyun Jung Cho and Patrick D. Biber
Restoring Grassland Habitat in Linn, Wisconsin by
Chris Kaplan and Noelle Hoeffner
Experimental Management of Nesting Habitat for the Blanding's Turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) by
Zara Dowling, Tanessa Hartwig, Erik Kiviat and Felicia Keesing
With the loss, fragmentation, and degradation of natural wetlands, habitat restoration and management are becoming
increasingly important tools in the conservation of many turtle species. The rare Blanding's turtle lives primarily in wetlands
but requires well-drained and sparsely vegetated soil for nesting. If traditionally used nesting habitat becomes unsuitable
due to vegetation overgrowth, females may travel farther with an increased risk of collection, predation, and mortality
from cars. At a habitat creation site in Dutchess County, New York, we examined the success and cost-effectiveness of
three methods of nesting habitat management-tilling, mowing, and weeding-on replicated 5 m × 7 m plots. Using
radiotelemetry, we followed female turtles throughout the 2006 and 2008 nesting seasons. Nesting turtles preferred
tilled plots to weeded or mowed plots. Our work suggests that tilling plots can be a successful and cost-effective means
of managing nesting habitat.
Estimating the Benefits of Freshwater Introduction into Coastal Wetland Ecosystems in Louisiana:
Nutrient and Sediment Analyses by
Ronald G. Boustany
Models have become a key tool for effectively forecasting the benefits of restoration projects, yet they are often too complicated
and inaccessible to resource managers for practical use. A desktop numeric model was developed for resources
managers to estimate the benefits of nutrients and sediments introduced into coastal marshes in Louisiana and to improve
the predictability of coastal restoration alternatives. In the model, nutrient benefits are based on the cumulative volume
of water introduced by an average annual flow rate, the average total nitrogen and phosphorus concentration of the
source water, the nutrient requirements of the plants based upon the annual plant production rate per unit area, and
the proportion of nutrients retained in the system. Sediment benefits are based upon the cumulative volume of water
introduced by the average annual flow, total suspended solid concentration, bulk density of the receiving marsh area,
average depth of the receiver area, and the retention of material introduced into the system. The sum of nutrient and
sediment benefits represents a gross change that is then applied to adjust the annual land change rate. Model applications
indicate that volume, concentration, and retention of materials tend to be the most important factors in determining
the efficiency of marsh building. Sites closest to the main flow of a river, where material concentrations are highest, are
capable of forming land at higher rates; however, off-river sites with more than 50% preexisting marsh vegetation can
potentially rebuild at comparable rates because of higher retention efficiencies. Lowest rates of land development are in
off-river sites with highly degraded marsh, and new delta formations in deep open water.
Ecological Restoration for Future Conservation Professionals:
Training with Conceptual Models and Practical Exercises by
James Aronson, Nikolay Aguirre and Jesús Muñoz
In the context of a new international master's degree program, "Biodiversity in Tropical Areas and its Conservation," we
led a two-week module on ecological restoration in Ecuador for 34 future conservation professionals from nine nations,
including seven from Latin America. One week was spent in the cloud-forest life zone, a second in the lowland tropical
forest. The ranges of biomes and socioeconomic and historical settings that commonly occur in tropical regions were
discussed. We saw these students as future communicators engaged not only in management of protected areas, but
also as deeply involved in outreach, negotiation, and consensus-building among stakeholders. Students were introduced
to concepts and techniques for evaluating a degraded landscape in order to determine past and present land uses and
conflicts of interest among stakeholders. They were instructed on how to select a reference model using sequential reference
sites and to incorporate nine attributes of satisfactorily restored ecosystems into restoration plans. In nine small
groups, the 34 participating students prepared proposals to obtain funding for a restoration project in their home countries
or in one of the two regions of Ecuador that were visited in the module. For this purpose, each group developed a
schematic model showing how the target ecosystems were degraded and landscapes fragmented. In a second schema,
they proposed a program to restore or rehabilitate different landscape units and to reintegrate fragmented landscapes.
Highlights and lessons learned from this modular exercise are presented and discussed.
Teaching the Assessment of Landscape Function in the Field:
Enabling the Design and Selection of Appropriate Restoration Techniques by
David J. Tongway
Groups in society interested in restoring disturbed landscapes range from self-motivated community groups to big commercial
enterprises. While restoration goals are generally identified, the initial starting position for many projects is often
characterized by too small a knowledge base and hence the selection process for choosing a restoration technique is not
rigorous. Landscape Function Analysis (LFA) is an in-the-field, indicator-based procedure that allows rapid assessment
of how well a landscape works as a biophysical system. The rapid conversion of raw field data into useful information
is a key design feature. This enables restoration planners and practitioners to understand the effect of disturbances and
their drivers, so that appropriate techniques can be devised and implemented to attain restoration goals. The same procedure
can be used to monitor restoration progress, once significant and relevant milestones are identified that can be
monitored over time. I will describe how I teach this technique in the field and recount how this has enabled restoration
practitioners to focus on the underlying disturbances.
A Multiinstitutional Spanish Master's Program in Ecosystem Restoration: Vision and Four-Year Experience by
José M. Rey Benayas, Adrián Escudero, José F. Martín Duque, José M. Nicolau, Pedro Villar-Salvador,
Diego García de Jalón and Luis Balaguer
Since 2006, an innovative, multiinstitutional Spanish Master in Ecosystem Restoration (MER) is jointly offered by four
major public universities in Madrid. In view of the high student demand-about 900 applications this academic year
for only 30 places, a remarkable 75% rate of professional poststudy employment in a period of economic crisis, and
the high number (> 40) of prestigious organizations involved in the program, we consider the MER program, although
still young, to be very promising for the long term. We explain the process to create the MER and achieve the results
obtained thus far. We describe its organization, report its vital statistics in terms of students, and identify some strengths
and weaknesses observed to date. The MER program has evolved as a network of knowledge and experience that links
universities, lecturers, researchers, students, private and public companies, NGOs, and administration centers. Our aim
is to help other groups that may want to launch similar graduate-level ecological restoration degree programs.
Developing the Bioliteracy of School Children for 24 Years: A Fundamental Tool for Ecological Restoration
and Conservation in Perpetuity of the Área de Conservación Guanacaste, Costa Rica by
Rosibel Elizondo Cruz and Róger Blanco Segura
The Área de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG, Guanacaste Conservation Area) in northwestern Costa Rica in Central
America was created to protect in perpetuity the rich natural diversity found there. The ACG contains an entire range of
interconnected ecosystems from the Pacific coastal-marine zone, through dry and cloud forests, to the Caribbean rain
forest. Generations of human pressures on the area, including ranching, agriculture, fires, timber extraction, and hunting,
have degraded these ecosystems, which are now in a process of regeneration through protection from destructive
human use. Although protection is an important part of conservation, the ACG's most potent tool for the long-term
conservation of its natural resources is the "biocultural restoration" of its neighbors. The ACG's Programa de Educación
Biologica (PEB, Biological Education Program) promotes the bioliteracy of local students, parents, and teachers through
field-oriented workshops in its different ecosystems. Through the education of the surrounding community about its
natural resources, PEB is restoring the biological understanding of its neighbors with the aim of creating a community
that can make better-informed environmental decisions in the future.
COOPLANTAR: A Brazilian Initiative to Integrate Forest Restoration
with Job and Income Generation in Rural Areas by
Carlos Alberto B. Mesquita, Christiane G.D. Holvorcem, Claudio Henrique Lyrio, Paulo Dimas de Menezes,
José Dilson da Silva Dias and José Francisco Azevedo Jr.
The Cooperative of Reforestation Workers of Far Southern Bahia (COOPLANTAR) worked with Instituto BioAtlântica, Conservation International, and the Nature Conservancy in order to offer its members training in forest restoration. Here, members in 2006 in Caraíva, Brazil, learn techniques developed by the Ecology and Forest Restoration Laboratory at the University of São Paulo. The cooperative specializes in restoration of the Atlantic Forest in the Monte Pascoal-Pau Brasil Ecological Corridor in southern Bahia and provides jobs and income for members of local impoverished communities. Photo by Beto Mesquita
We describe the process leading to the creation of the Cooperative of Reforestation Workers of Far Southern Bahia (COOPLANTAR),
a cooperative that specializes in restoration of the Atlantic Forest in the Monte Pascoal-Pau Brasil Ecological
Corridor in southern Bahia, Brazil, and provides job and income for members of local impoverished communities. We discuss
the achievements of the cooperative, difficulties it has faced, and its prospects for future sustainability and expansion.
Earth Partnership for Schools: Ecological Restoration in Schools and Communities by
Rick Hall and Cheryl Bauer-Armstrong
Journal writing and drawing encourage teachers to reflect on the problems and possibilities of work as educators and environmental stewards. With a view of the restored Curtis Prairie at the University of Wisconsin Arboretum, teachers contemplate artistic and historical perspectives and how they might influence a landscape design and restoration. Photo by Rick Hall
University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum's Earth Partnership for Schools program works with students, teachers, and
citizen volunteers to restore schoolyards and natural areas and to address diversity, pollution prevention, and ecological
literacy across age, ecosystem, discipline, and culture. A ten-step restoration education process with more than 100 activities
that address multiple learning styles is integrated with school curricula. The RESTORE ("Restoration Education, Science
Training and Outreach for Regional Educators") program has trained teams to bring Earth Partnership for Schools to a
variety of ecosystems in 17 states and Puerto Rico, and has included more than 400 schools, 1,600 teachers, and 160,000
students. Key supporters and collaborators include the U.S. National Science Foundation, U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service, and other public and private agencies, universities, arboreta,
botanic gardens, and environmental organizations. Earth Partnership is inspired by Aldo Leopold's "land ethic" that sees
land as a community to which we belong, and was articulated so clearly in his beloved Sand County Almanac in 1949.
