©Danilo Lima, Agripalm Ambiental
The RRC database contains a wide variety of resources and publications related to ecological restoration, and we are actively working to expand this collection. It is our aim to serve as the principal clearinghouse for information and tools to support the work of researchers, practitioners, land managers, educators, students, and anyone else interested in restoration. Use the filter tool below to search the database by title, author, resource type, keyword, or any combination of these factors.
Although SER does review all entries in the database for relevance and quality, these resources have not been rigorously reviewed or extensively vetted in every case, and SER therefore makes no claim as to their accuracy or accordance with generally accepted principles in the field. The database is provided as a resource for visitors to the SER website, and it is ultimately left to the individual user to make their own determinations about the quality and veracity of a given publication or resource.
If there is a resource we missed, please let us know! We are interested in current books, articles, technical documents, videos, and other resources that are directly relevant to ecological restoration science, practice or policy, as well as resources treating the social, cultural and economic dimensions of restoration.
Community Estuarine Monitoring Manual
Abstract:This manual presents an estuarine monitoring framework that is suitable for use by a wide range of community groups including a range of activities that these groups may wish to explore.
Resource Type:Technical DocumentPublication Date: 2007
Forest History as a Basis for Ecosystem Restoration: A Multidisciplinary Case Study in a South Swedish Temperate Landscape
Abstract:Basic knowledge of the previous forest types or ecosystem present in an area ought to be an essential part of all landscape restoration. Here, we present a detailed study of forest and land use history over the past 2,000 years, from a large estate in southernmost Sweden, which is currently undergoing a restoration program. In particular, the aim was to identify areas with long continuity of important tree species and open woodland conditions. We employed a multidisciplinary approach using paleoecological analyses (regional and local pollen, plant macrofossil, tree ring) and historical sources (taxation documents, land surveys, forest inventories). This study gives an example of the spatial and temporal variation of the vegetation that has historically occurred within one area and emphasizes that information from one methodological technique provides only limited information about an area’s vegetation history.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
General Decision Process for Managing Invasive Plant Species in Garry Oak and Associated Ecosystems
Abstract:We have replaced our former Decision Support Tool for Invasive Species Management (DST) with a new guide, the General Decision Process for Managing Invasive Plant Species in Garry Oak and Associated Ecosystems (GDP), and the more specific information for blackberry, ivy and broom removal has been moved into separate Best Management Practices (BMP). In addition, two new BMPs have been created for orchard-grass and daphne. Additional information for other invasive species is available in our field manual on Invasive Species in Garry Oak and Associated Ecosystems in British Columbia.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Grassland Degradation in China: Methods of Monitoring, Management and Restoration
Abstract:Several technologies for grassland diagnosis have been developed to arrest grassland deterioration. Indicator plant species have been determined according to grassland types. Relations of grazing pressure and species distribution have been quantified. Several measures for restoration of degraded grasslands are proposed as the next step of development in this field, including agro-ecological measures. A promising tool for grassland monitoring is the use of remote sensing in conjunction with geographic information systems. Accurate and real-time monitoring and management of grasslands have become increasingly feasible through sensor improvement in satellite and geographic information systems generalization in recent years.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Green Roofs as Urban Ecosystems: Ecological Structures, Functions, and Services
Abstract:Green roofs (roofs with a vegetated surface and substrate) provide ecosystem services in urban areas, including improved storm-water management, better regulation of building temperatures, reduced urban heat-island effects, and increased urban wildlife habitat. This article reviews the evidence for these benefits and examines the biotic and abiotic components that contribute to overall ecosystem services. We emphasize the potential for improving green- roof function by understanding the interactions between its ecosystem elements, especially the relationships among growing media, soil biota, and vegetation, and the interactions between community structure and ecosystem functioning. Further research into green-roof technology should assess the efficacy of green roofs compared to other technologies with similar ends, and ultimately focus on estimates of aggregate benefits at landscape scales and on more holistic cost-benefit analyses.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Hydrological Science and Wetland Restoration: Some Case Studies from Europe
Abstract:Throughout the world, wetlands are increasingly being recognised as important elements of the landscape because of their high biodiversity and goods and services they provide to mankind. After many decades of wetland destruction and conversion, large areas of wetlands are now protected under the International Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar) and regional or national legislation such as the European Union Habitats Directive. In many cases, there is a need to restore the ecological character of the wetland through appropriate water management. This paper provides examples of scientific knowledge of wetland hydrology that can guide such restoration. It focuses on the need for sound hydrological science on a range of issues including water level control, topography, flood storage, wetland connections with rivers and sustainability of water supply under climate change.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Incorporating Positive Interactions in Aquatic Restoration and Conservation
Abstract:The role of positive interactions in structuring biological communities is recognized throughout the field of ecology, but has yet to be well integrated into the restoration and conservation of aquatic systems. Here, we use examples of success in terrestrial restoration to (1) describe how a broader perspective on the scale and nature of positive interactions is necessary if we are to take full advantage of their conservation potential and (2) explain why and when positive interactions should be considered in restoration and conservation of marine, estuarine, and freshwater habitats. Such goals can be accomplished without considering positive interactions, and situations certainly exist in which positive interactions should play a minor role in restoration plans. However, a more explicit recognition of these interactions will make restoration and conservation more successful. In some cases, restoration activities may fail if these interactions are not included.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Invasive Rodent Eradication on Islands
Abstract:Invasive mammals are the greatest threat to island biodiversity and invasive rodents are likely responsible for the greatest number of extinctions and ecosystem changes. Techniques for eradicating rodents from islands were developed over 2 decades ago. Since that time there has been a significant development and application of this conservation tool. We reviewed the literature on invasive rodent eradications to assess its current state and identify actions to make it more effective. Worldwide, 332 successful rodent eradications have been undertaken; we identified 35 failed eradications and 20 campaigns of unknown result.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Lake Restoration: Successes, Failures and Long-term Effects
Abstract:In this study we evaluated data from more than 70 restoration projects conducted mainly in shallow, eutrophic lakes in Denmark and the Netherlands. Special focus was given to the removal of zooplanktivorous and benthivorous fish, by far the most common internal lake measure.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Linking Ecosystem Services and Water Resources: Landscape-scale Hydrology of the Little Karoo
Abstract:This paper describes the linkage between landscape-scale hydrology and ecosystem services, and how degradation of the landscape is believed to have altered the delivery of those services. The Little Karoo, an arid environment in South Africa that encompasses a remarkable diversity of plant species, has been degraded by inappropriate agricultural practices, mainly overgrazing, cultivation, and irrigation. Landscape linkages, such as hydrological flows and the recycling of organic matter and nutrients, have been disrupted, resulting in net losses at all scales, from the shrub patch to the river basin. Land rehabilitation, while in most cases too expensive at the farm scale, may be economically feasible at the river basin scale, provided that some of the economic benefits are used to rehabilitate and manage areas as socioecological systems.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Long-term Effects of Restoration on Soil Hydraulic Properties in Revegetation-Stabilized Desert Ecosystems
Abstract:Improving structure of soils found at 0–5 cm depth, and increasing the thickness of biological soil crusts are both associated with sand dune revegetation-stabilization in arid northwestern China. Since 1956, research on sand dune stabilization has included the use of straw chequer- boards to facilitate development of soil structure. Results of this long-term study show that changes in soil hydraulic properties and improvement in soil structure were associated with migrating dune stabilization.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Long-term Enhancement of Agricultural Production by Restoration of Biodiversity
Abstract:Experimental manipulations have shown positive impacts of increased species richness on ecosystem productivity, but there remain some questions about this relationship. First, most studies last < 4 years, which raises issues about whether diversity–productivity relationships are maintained in mature communities. Secondly, the conservation relevance of many studies is debatable. We addressed both issues using long-term experimental studies of the agriculturally relevant hay yield of recreated species-rich grasslands. The aims of conservationists and farmers can often be in conflict. This study has shown that the recreation of diverse grasslands of conservation value can have a positive impact on hay yield, which benefits the farm business, and this is repeated across differing sites. Because the effect is maintained over time, farm income will be increased in the long term.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Most Significant Changes Experienced by Farmers from Adopting Rainforestation Farming
Abstract:The Visayas State University (VSU) developed the rainforestation farming (RF) system to replace the more destructive forms of kaingin or slash-and-burn practices commonly practiced by farmers and provide them with a stable and higher income. VSU disseminated the technology through training and establishment of demonstration farms coupled with various extension materials. The most important changes experienced by farmers from adopting RF were increase in income, greater social skills, improvement of their water and air conditions, and enhancement of biodiversity in their rainforestation farms.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
On the Status of Restoration Science: Obstacles and Opportunities
Abstract:One obstacle is demonstration science, or an overreliance on simplistic experiments with few treatment factors and few levels of those factors. Complex, multivariate experiments yield greater insights, especially when teamed with sophisticated methods of data analysis. A second key obstacle is myopic scholarship that has led to little synthesis and weak conceptual theory. A greater awareness of and explicit references to ecological principles will help develop the conceptual basis of restoration science.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Paleoecology and “inter-situ” Restoration on Kaua`i, Hawai`i
Abstract:On the Hawaiian Island of Kaua`i, human-caused extinctions are currently occurring in a microcosm of island endemics. Recent studies of endangered plants suggest that conventional in-situ and ex-situ conservation strategies are losing the battle here. Paleoecological findings support the idea that creating new populations in formerly much larger, late prehistoric and early historical ranges of declining species may provide a reliable and cost-effective hedge against extinction. On Kaua`i, several paleoecological sites have played key roles in planning and implementing ecological and cultural restoration projects.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Paleoecology and Ecosystem Restoration: Case Studies from Chesapeake Bay and the Florida Everglades
Abstract:Climate extremes that cause droughts, floods, or large temperature fluctuations can complicate ecosystem restoration efforts focused on local and regional human disturbance. Restoration targets are often based primarily on monitoring data and modeling simulations, which provide information on species’ short-term response to disturbance and environmental variables. Consequently, the targets may be unsustainable under the spectrum of natural variability inherent in the system or under future climate change. Increasingly, ecologists and restoration planners recognize the value of the long temporal perspective provided by paleoecological data. Advances in paleoclimatology, including better climate proxy methods and temporal resolution, contribute to our understanding of ecosystem response to anthropogenic and climatic forcing at all time scales. We highlight paleoecological research in the Chesapeake Bay and the Florida Everglades and summarize the resulting contributions to restoration planning. Integration of paleoecological, historic, monitoring, and modeling efforts will lead to the development of sustainable, adaptive management strategies for ecosystem restoration.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Payments for Environmental Services in Watersheds: Insights from a Comparative Study of Three Cases in Central America
Abstract:We have compared three cases of payments for water-related environmental services (PES) in Central America, in terms of socioeconomic background, opportunity costs of forest conservation and stakeholders’ perceptions of the conditions of water resources and other issues. We found that, in general, the opportunity costs are larger than the amounts paid, which apparently contradicts the economic foundation of PES schemes and suggests that the role of “intangibles” is important in inducing participation. The results also show that trade-offs between different environmental and social goals are likely to emerge in PES schemes, posing some doubts as to their ability to be multipurpose instruments for environmental improvement and rural development. We also found that PES schemes may work as a conflict-resolution instrument, facilitating downstream–upstream problem solving, though at the same time they might introduce changes in social perceptions of property rights.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Persistent Soil Seed Banks for Natural Rehabilitation of Dry Tropical Forests in Northern Ethiopia
Abstract:The aim of the present research was to test the hypothesis whether soil seed banks can contribute to natural forest regeneration in the dry forest of Ethiopia. Therefore, the composition of the seed bank in relation to vegetation and abiotic environment was analysed in four forest relics and four exclosures, i.e. demarcated land areas under strict conservation management, in the highlands of Tigray, northern Ethiopia. Results show strong relationships between natural vegetation, seed bank composition, soil chemical characteristics and environmental degradation, as evidenced through characteristics such as land use impact and soil depth.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Planting Density, Hydrodynamic Exposure and Mussel Beds Affect Survival of Transplanted Intertidal Eelgrass
Abstract:Transplantation of eelgrass Zostera marina has become a promising restoration tool since natural recolonisation during the last century failed after massive mortality, due to a combination of a wasting disease outbreak and a sequence of human impacts. We studied the interactive effects of planting density and hydrodynamic exposure on the survival of transplants of an annual population of intertidal eelgrass. Eelgrass planted in open spaces within a mussel bed survived significantly better than transplants situated 60 m seaward of the mussel bed. Thus, mussel beds facilitate eelgrass survival. The insights into the processes affecting transplantation success will be of use in eelgrass restoration around the world.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
LIFE and Europe’s Rivers: Protecting and Improving our Water Resources
Abstract:The examples featured in this brochure form an overview of how LIFE co-funded projects have helped Member States meet the requirements of the EU’s Water Framework Directive. Projects have helped to implement it by testing, validating and demonstrating procedures and approaches that aid the management and sharing of information and the development of guidance on technical issues.
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2007
LIFE and Europe’s Wetlands: Restoring a Vital Ecosystem
Abstract:Wetland ecosystems hold an important part of Europe’s biodiversity. They provide ideal conditions for a vast diversity of habitats and species, and are especially important for birds providing vital nesting and migratory flyway areas. Despite their importance, however, wetlands are disappearing at an alarming rate and are among Europe’s most threatened ecosystems. This brochure presents a selection of wetland projects that have received LIFE co- funding since 1992. The majority of case studies focus on the restoration and management of wetlands, while a number also target key wetland species.
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2007
Protecting and Restoring Wetlands: Strengthening the Role of Local Governments
Abstract:This paper has been written to help strengthen local government wetland protection and restoration efforts. It first considers options for local governments to strengthen their protection and restoration efforts. Many web site references are provided for those wishing more detailed information. It then considers measures federal agencies, states, land trusts and others could take to encourage and help local governments strengthen their efforts.
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2007
Restoring Nature’s Capital: An Action Agenda to Sustain Ecosystem Services
Abstract:The authors contend that governance—who makes decisions, how they are made, and with what information—is at the heart of sustaining healthy ecosystems. With this as their fundamental tenet, the authors present an action agenda for reversing degradation of ecosystems and sustaining their capacity to provide vital services for generations to come. The action agenda identifies how decisions about development projects and investments can be made in ways that lead to healthy ecosystem services. These decisions, made by local and national governments, corporations, and international financial institutions, involve billions of dollars, affect huge swaths of land and water, and affect millions of people.
Resource Type:White PaperPublication Date: 2007
People as ecological participants in ecological restoration
Abstract:In 1987, Bradshaw proposed that ecological restoration is the ultimate “acid test” of our understanding the functioning of ecosystems. Although this concept is widely supported academically, how it can be applied by restoration practitioners is still unclear. This is an issue not limited to Bradshaw’s acid test, but moreover, reflects a general difficulty associated with the polarization between conceptual restoration (restoration ecology) and practical restoration (ecological restoration), where each has functioned to certain degree in isolation of the other. Outside of the more obvious pragmatic reasons for the relative independence between ecological restoration and restoration ecology, the authors propose that a more contentious explanation is that the approach taken toward understanding ecosystem development in restoration ecology is tangential to what actually takes place in ecological restoration. Current paradigms assume that the process of ecosystem development in restoration should follow the developmental trajectories suggested by classical ecological succession models. However, unlike these models, ecosystem development in restoration is, at least initially, largely manipulated by people, rather than by abiotic and biotic forces alone.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Positive Feedbacks in Seagrass Ecosystems: Implications for Success in Conservation and Restoration
Abstract:In the 1930s, such a dramatic event happened in the Dutch Wadden Sea. Before the shift, large seagrass beds (Zostera marina) were present in this area. After the construction of a large dam and an incidence of the “wasting disease” in the early 1930s, these meadows became virtually extinct and never recovered despite restoration attempts. We investigated whether this shift could be explained as a critical transition between alternative stable states, and whether the lack of recovery could be due to the high resilience of the new turbid state. As positive feedbacks are common in seagrasses, our findings may explain both the worldwide observed collapses and the low success rate of restoration attempts of seagrass habitats. Therefore, appreciation of ecosystem resilience may be crucial in seagrass ecosystem management.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Regeneration of Seasonal Deciduous Forest Tree Species in Long-Used Pastures in Central Brazil
Abstract:We tested the relationship between the length of pasture use and the density, richness, and composition of naturally regenerating tropical seasonal deciduous forest in pastures. We sampled regenerating trees in 25 pastures distributed in four age classes ranging from < 6 to 40 yr of use. Density and composition of regenerating trees did not change with pasture age, but richness was lower in 25- and 40-yr-old pastures. Nonetheless, a number of species seem to be able to resprout even after 40 yr of ranching.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Restoration ecology to the future: A call for a new paradigm
Abstract:This paper calls for a new paradigm of ecological restoration to the future. In this article, I attempt to address these dilemmas and a need for changing our restoration paradigm from past- to future-oriented for its applicability of ecological theories to restoration practice, predictability of restoration outcome, and sustainability of restored ecosystems. Restoration should (1) establish the ecosystems that are able to sustain in the future, not the past, environment; (2) have multiple alternative goals and trajectories for unpredictable endpoints; (3) focus on rehabilitation of ecosystem functions rather than recomposition of species or cosmetics of landscape surface; and (4) acknowledge its identity as a ‘‘value-laden’’ applied science within economically and socially acceptable framework.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Restoration Ecology to the Future: A Call for New Paradigm
Abstract:This paper calls for a new paradigm of ecological restoration to the future. A future-oriented restoration should (1) establish the ecosystems that are able to sustain in the future, not the past, environment; (2) have multiple alternative goals and trajectories for unpredictable endpoints; (3) focus on rehabilitation of ecosystem functions rather than recomposition of species or cosmetics of landscape surface; and (4) acknowledge its identity as a ‘‘value-laden’’ applied science within economically and socially acceptable framework.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Restoration of Dry Afromontane Forest Using Pioneer Shrubs as Nurse-Plants for Olea europaea ssp. cuspidate
Abstract:Shrubs are often considered competitive barriers for seedlings planted in reforestation programs, although they can facilitate tree recruitment, especially in ecosystems under high abiotic stress. An alternative reforestation technique using pioneer shrubs as nurse-plants for Olea europaea ssp. cuspidata was tested in exclosures in northern Ethiopia. Seedlings were planted in three different microhabitats, and their survival was monitored. Planting under shrubs may increase seedling survival and assist regeneration of dry Afromontane vegetation. Preserving pioneers also reduces soil erosion and conserves biodiversity. Excluding livestock is essential for Olea woodland restoration and allows persistent but morphologically modified Olea shrubs to develop vigorous regrowth. Facilitative processes are guiding principles for assisted forest restoration, but above-average rains may be critical to restore higher biomass levels in semiarid areas.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007
Restoration of Forest Ecosystems in Fragmented Landscapes of Temperate and Montane Tropical Latin America
Abstract:We integrate forest restoration experiences aimed at a variety of purposes that allow us to gain insight over several years under contrasting ecological, social and economic conditions in six study regions: the Argentinian Andes, the IX and X Regions in Chile (including northern Chiloe_ Island), and central Veracruz and the central and northern Highlands of Chiapas (Mexico). By comparing analogous conditions and highlighting differences among the study sites, current pitfalls can be identified and used to define a minimum set of elements to be considered in a protocol for restoration practices. The restoration studies reviewed here include a wide variety of ecological and socio-economic circumstances that allow the identification of broad guidelines, criteria and indicators for planning, implementing and monitoring ecological restoration programmes. We conclude with statements that suggest approaches, strategies and concrete actions that might be considered as lessons learned and inputs for best practice in forest restoration research and programmes conducted in other developing regions.
Resource Type:Peer-reviewed ArticlePublication Date: 2007