Restoration Attempts Research Articles

The largest single-species Nanozostera japonica seagrass meadow of China: Its decline, restoration attempts, and short-term effects on macrobenthos and soil bacterial communities

Seagrass beds support vital ecological functions so that when seagrass experience severe degradation, their ecosystem service functions are diminished or lost. The largest Nanozostera japonica seagrass bed in China, situated in the Yellow River Delta, has undergone significant degradation due to Spartina alterniflora invasion and the impact of Typhoon Lekima (2019). The lack of seeds and overwintering shoots makes natural seagrass recovery challenging, prompting the urgent need for seagrass ecological restoration. In the present study, seed sowing experiments were conducted with varying burial depths, seed sources, and sowing times, as well as transplantation experiments with different transplant unit sizes and intervals in the severely degraded seagrass bed. Subsequently, changes in macrobenthos and soil bacterial diversity were tracked after seagrass recovery. According to the results, the optimal burial depth for N. japonica seeds varies across different sediment types, with 4 cm being suitable for sandy soil and 2 cm for silty soil. Seeds sown in May did not survive due to high temperatures. Seeds from Dalian exhibited superior growth after sowing, making them ideal material for seed restoration projects. Transplanting N. japonica sods with 25 × 25 cm transplant units and 50-cm intervals resulted in the most robust growth, indicating it as a suitable method for adult transplantation. Following seagrass re-establishment, macrobenthos and soil bacterial diversity increased significantly. The findings of the present study provide valuable technical guidance and theoretical support for the ecological restoration of N. japonica. Future efforts should prioritize the restoration of seagrass bed ecological functions, with longer-term effects examined.

Spatiotemporal Assessment of Water Pollution for Beira Lake, Sri Lanka

Beira Lake, located in Colombo, Sri Lanka, has suffered severe anthropogenic impacts, with previous restoration attempts failing due to a limited understanding of pollutant dynamics. Aiming to fill this gap, a comprehensive study was conducted during dry and wet seasons to assess the spatiotemporal water pollution of Beira Lake, employing key physicochemical parameters, numerical indices, and remote sensing analysis. The water pollution index (WPI) results categorize Beira Lake as highly polluted, with WPI values ranging from 2.38 ± 0.92 in the wet season to 2.53 ± 1.32 in the dry season. Comparatively higher COD levels recorded in the Beira Lake network, especially for Gangarama Lake show significant pollution levels during both the dry and wet seasons, e.g., the highest COD levels, at 306.40 mg/L, were observed during the wet season. The Trophic State Index (TSI) results indicate eutrophic and hypereutrophic conditions in Beira Lake, which are particularly pronounced during the wet season. The heavy metal pollution index (HPI) results suggest elevated heavy metal concentrations in Beira Lake, especially in the wet season. Combined with field investigation results, a remote sensing data analysis between 2016 and 2023 reveals significant improvements in water transparency, suggesting positive effects of recent management interventions. Parameters demanding attention include COD, nitrate, and total phosphate levels due to their consistent exceedance of permissible limits. The PCA results of indices correlations between wet and dry seasons offer valuable insights into the complex dynamics of Beira Lake’s water quality. The study makes recommendations for restoring Beira Lake, including stringent pollution controls, regular dredging, green infrastructure implementation, implementing new rules and regulations, and community engagement.

Spatial distribution of settlement of Diadema antillarum around Saba, Dutch Caribbean.

The mass mortality event of the herbivorous sea urchin Diadema antillarum in 1983-1984 has been a major contributor to the diminished resilience of coral reefs throughout the Caribbean. The reduction in grazing pressure resulted in algae proliferation, which inhibited coral recruitment after disturbances such as disease, hurricanes, pollution and climatic change induced marine heat waves. Natural recovery of D. antillarum after the 1983-1984 die-off has been slow. However, the few locations with recovered populations exhibit signs of improvement in coral reef health, prompting interest in D. antillarum restoration. Current restoration strategies include translocation of wild individuals, the restocking of juveniles that are either cultured from gametes or collected as settlers and head-started in a nursery, and assisted natural recovery by providing suitable settlement substrate. Both the collection of wild settlers and assisted natural recovery necessitate an understanding of the local, spatiotemporal trends in settlement. In this study, which was carried out on the Dutch Caribbean Island of Saba, artificial turf settlement collectors were deployed at nine locations around the island and monitored from June 2019 till July 2020 (13 months). The primary objective was to identify trends in larval settlement in space and time, to be able to optimize restoration efforts. Additionally, the small size of Saba allowed us to deploy settlement collectors around the island and compare D. antillarum settlement between windward and leeward sides. Our study showed that on Saba, D. antillarum settlement peaked in June and July, following similar seasonal trends observed around other islands in the Northeastern Caribbean. By far the most settlement occurred at the leeward side of the island, suggesting that hydrodynamic forces entrained D. antillarum larvae in the lee of Saba and/or calmer waters facilitated settlement. Limited settlement occurred on the more exposed windward locations. The identified high settlement locations are candidates for settler collection and restoration attempts. Continued monitoring of D. antillarum settlement, especially in light of the 2022 D. antillarum die-off, holds significance as it can provide insights into the potential of natural recovery.

Impacts of greenhouse fertilization and planting season on survival and reproductive potential of Silene regia transplants

Restoration of rare plants is essential to maintain species diversity in natural areas. The methods used to grow and plant these rare plants for restoration impact seedling health and potentially the success of restoration attempts. We evaluated how different fertilizers and planting seasons impacted survival and reproductive potential for transplants of Silene regia. Plants were grown from seeds in greenhouses with four fertilizer treatments: slow‐release, liquid biweekly (every other week), liquid weekly, and control (no fertilizer). Transplanting was conducted in spring and fall for 2 years (2010 and 2011) at three sites. Number of leaves on transplants were counted before planting. Plants were counted over the growing seasons for 8 years (2010–2017) to determine survival and stem elongation (an indication of reproductive potential). Transplants produced the most leaves with slow‐release, followed by both liquid fertilizers and the fewest leaves with no fertilizer. The fertilizer type had a limited effect, but plants grown with fertilizer had increased survival and stem elongation relative to no fertilizer when a fertilizer effect was found. Planting season had a more consistent effect, with spring having higher survival and stem elongation. Sites differed for all measured parameters. Year‐to‐year survival was initially high, then dropped after 3–5 years, and less than 20% of plants remained by 2017. These findings demonstrate the value of pre‐planting fertilizer to provide vigorous transplants and planting season for reintroductions. Finally, multiple sites and long‐term monitoring are important to ensure success for reintroductions of rare species such as S. regia.

Weakened casual feedback loops following intensive restoration efforts and climate changes in a large shallow freshwater lake

Understanding how phytoplankton interacts with local and regional drivers as well as their feedbacks is a great challenge, and quantitative analyses of the regulating role of human activities and climate changes on these feedback loops are also limited. By using monthly monitoring dataset (2000–2017) from Lake Taihu and empirical dynamic modelling to construct causal networks, we quantified the strengths of causal feedbacks among phytoplankton, local environments, zooplankton, meteorology as well as global climate oscillation. Prevalent bidirectional causal linkages between phytoplankton biomass (chlorophyll a) and the tested drivers were found, providing holistic and quantitative evidence of the ubiquitous feedback loops. Phytoplankton biomass exhibited the highest feedbacks with total inorganic nitrogen and ammonia and the lowest with nitrate. The feedbacks between phytoplankton biomass and environmental factors from 2000 to 2017 could be classified into two groups: the local environments (e.g., nutrients, pH, transparency, zooplankton biomass)-driven enhancement loops promoting the response of the phytoplankton biomass, and the climate (e.g., wind speed)-driven regulatory loops suppressing it. The two counterbalanced groups modified the emergent macroecological patterns. Our findings revealed that the causal feedback networks loosened significantly after 2007 following nutrient loading reduction and unsuccessful biomanipulation restoration attempts by stocking carp. The strength of enhancement loops underwent marked decreases leading to reduced phytoplankton responses to the tested drivers, while the climate (decreasing wind speed, warming winter)-driven regulatory loops increased– like a tug-of-war. To counteract the self-amplifying feedback loops, the present eutrophication mitigation efforts, especially nutrient reduction, should be continued, and introduction of alternative measures to indirectly regulate the critical components (e.g., pH, Secchi depth, zooplankton biomass) of the loops would be beneficial.

The root of influence: root-associated bacterial communities alter resource allocation in seagrass seedlings

IntroductionSeagrass roots harbour diverse assemblages of microorganisms that likely benefit the growth and survival of meadows. Yet, restoration efforts rarely consider their effect on developing seagrass seedlings. Sediment origin should determine the types of rhizosphere and root-colonising (rhizoplane) microorganisms and thus the performance of seedlings during restoration, particularly for slow growing climax species like Posidonia. Recent Posidonia restoration attempts in South Australia used commercially sourced 'play pit sand' for seedling propagation and planting, but have been impacted by high mortality. More natural substrates like seagrass meadow sediment have not been previously investigated for suitability over conventional substrates with regard to seedling growth and survival.MethodsTo assess the relevance of seagrass associated microorganisms in the growth of Posidonia angustifolia seedlings, we investigated the bacterial communities from tank-raised seedlings propagated in autoclave treated and untreated 'play pit sand' and meadow mix (comprising a 1:3 ratio of natural meadow sediment and beach sand) over a 12-week period. Autoclave treatment was adopted in order to diminish the bacterial load prior to planting and thus inform their contribution (if any) on early seedling growth. Samples for bacterial community analysis and seedling growth measurements (numbers and total length of roots/leaves, root diameter, seedling weight, starch reserves) were taken at 4 and 12 weeks. Bacterial assemblages were surveyed from DNA extracts from bulk and rhizosphere sediments and root tissues, as well as from swabs of P. angustifolia fruit, established meadow sediment and water samples prior to seedling propagation, by constructing Illumina 16S rRNA gene libraries.ResultsWhile most growth measurements did not vary significantly between sediment type or treatment, proportional growth of roots versus leaves (as expressed as a pseudo root:shoot ratio) was significantly related to treatment, sediment type and seed length. Seedlings from meadow mix invested more in leaves, regardless of treatment, when compared to play sand. Autoclave treatment increased investment in roots for play sand but increased the investment in leaves for meadow mix. Bacterial communities differed significantly between sediments and between sample types (bulk, rhizosphere and roots), with the roots from meadow mix seedlings containing an increased abundance of various potentially beneficial bacterial taxa.DiscussionWhile such changes appear to affect the early development of seedlings, bacterial community dynamics are also likely coupled to changes in nutrient availability. Further research is thus required to disentangle host seedling growth-nutrient-bacterial community dynamics with the view to identifying microbes that may support the growth and vigour of seedlings under different nutrient conditions as part of future restoration efforts.

Utilization of a new restoration technique for the rehabilitation of a degraded mangrove ecosystem: a case study from Koggala Lagoon, Sri Lanka

Mangrove ecosystems, amongst the most productive and biologically complex on Earth, are being degraded worldwide, and their widespread decline during the past decades has affected vital ecosystem services. Mangroves at Koggala lagoon on the southern coast of Sri Lanka have been degraded at an alarming rate due to agricultural practices, coastal zone development, and tourism activities. Most of the banks are heavily eroded due to boat and sea plane activities, and the mangrove ecosystem has been significantly damaged. Implementation of a scientific rehabilitation project was needed to restore this degraded mangrove ecosystem, and research was carried out to enrich the mangrove community by re-establishing mangroves on the eroded banks using corrosion-resistant plastic barrels. The sustainability of replanted mangroves was monitored under phase one and the re-establishment of ecological functions in the mangrove community was monitored under phase two. The accumulated biomass carbon during the period of two and half years was calculated by an allometric equation suggested for calculating biomass carbon of mangroves using the girth and height of individuals. The highest rate of girth increment was observed by the 24th month from establishment, whilst the growth rate declined between the 18th and the 30th months. During the study period, the average above-ground and below-ground biomass per barrel showed a linear increment. Our case study showed that the new method used for restoration is successful in establishing mangroves in sites with high erosion. This restoration technique was successful in coping with the situation in Koggala lagoon where previous restoration attempts were failures. Thus, we recommend this restoration method for sites facing the threat of severe erosion.

Potential contributions of the soil seed bank and seed rain for accelerating the restoration of riparian catchments in Australia

The quality and quantity of soil seed bank composition can play a key role in secondary succession restoration efforts such as those involved in this study, which concerned the restoration of damaged native sites in riparian environments in Victoria, Australia. The objective of this study of the restoration work was to determine the role played by naturally existing soil seed bank in the success of natural restoration in these restored and unmanaged riparian areas. In this regard, we sampled the soil seed bank, seed rain, seedlings in the field and vegetation cover from three sub catchments defined by restoration attempts which had been conducted (i) < 3 years, (ii) 4–8 years, and (iii) > 9 years previous to sampling. In addition, (iv) in order to provide comparative data, adjacent sites (iv) chosen for future restoration and (v) with remnant vegetation, were also sampled. From samples, a total of 8858 seedlings were recorded from the seed bank and the vegetation survey showed 170 species, with exotic species being more numerous than native. The seed rain (a total of 1422 seeds) was dominated by exotic species at all sites. When comparing the vegetation distribution and the seed rain composition, it was clear that whilst the seed bank was more promising as a comparative recruitment source of native species, there were still too many sites dominated by exotic species to rely on this as a long-term restoration strategy. However, this study indicated that there were significant variations in restoration potential among the sites, suggesting that some careful prior site selection for investment of restoration efforts is an important issue. As a consequence, we have recommended that a detailed understanding of the soil seed bank and seed rain species composition prior to the restoration is essential, since a positive seed bank composition with a significant relative density of native species seeds, will provide an indication of native species’ resilience and their potential for recovery. We therefore believe that the findings of this study will provide valuable information to natural resource management agencies regarding the strategy for prioritisation of restoration sites, which will be more beneficial than randomly selecting sites for habitat restoration. In addition, with successful sector restoration, it is expected that the increasing usefulness of the seed bank will allow further restoration of adjacent areas with time.

Precise vegetation restoration in arid regions based on potential natural vegetation and potential normalized difference vegetation index

Precise vegetation restoration is critical in drylands, as some inappropriate restoration attempts have even increased water scarcity and degradation in afforestation areas. Potential natural vegetation (PNV) is widely used to provide a reference for the appropriate location and vegetation type of restoration programs while the appropriate restored areas remain unknown. Therefore, we proposed a PNV–potential normalized difference vegetation index (PNDVI) coupling framework based on multiple machine learning (ML) algorithms for precise dryland vegetation restoration. Taking the lower Tarim River Basin (LTRB) with a total area of 1,182 km2 as a case study, its present suitable restoration locations, area, and appropriate planting species were quantitatively estimated. The results showed that the model developed by incorporating PNDVI into PNV with easily measurable and available data such as temperature and soil properties can accurately identify dryland restoration patterns. In LTRB, the potentially suitable habitats of trees and grass are closer to the riverbank, while shrubby habitats are further away from the course, covering 1.88, 2.96, and 25.12 km2, respectively. There is still enormous land potential for further expansion of the current trees and grass in the LTRB, with 2.56 and 1.54% of existing land supposed to be trees and grass, respectively. This study's novel aspect is combining PNV and PNDVI to quantify and estimate precise restoration patterns through multiple ML algorithms. The model developed here can be used to evaluate the suitable reforestation locations, area, and vegetation types in drylands and to provide a basis for precise vegetation restoration.

Development of etching paste for serial number restoration on aluminum engine block.

Engine numbers, which involve information regarding the engine type, production number, and year and place of manufacture, are used for identification purposes. Comprising of unique alphanumeric characters, the engine numbers are fully or partially obliterated especially in auto theft and smuggling cases to conceal the origin, identity, and owner of vehicles. The limitations of the current restoration techniques such as the difficulty of using chemical liquid etching in vertical sites, the restrictions of magnetic and optical methods, and the applicability of several techniques like electron backscatter diffraction only in the laboratory environment prompt the development of new techniques. In view of these limitations and the importance of restoring engine numbers in criminal investigations, this unique study aimed to develop an etching paste that would restore the effaced characters on a real aluminum alloy engine block. The characters which were cold-stamped on the engine block were milled at varying depths and restoration attempts were conducted using etching pastes formed with different chemicals and materials. The analyses indicate that the etching paste formed with 200 mg of perlite, 400 mg of iron powder, and 450 μL of 20 M NaOH provided restoration to a good extent. The prevention of over-etching through the controlling of the chemical reaction and the cost-effectiveness appears to be the advantages of this technique. The success of recovery on the real engine block, the facilitation of restoration on curved surfaces, and the chance of on-site usage will likely make the etching paste a widely used tool in serial number restoration.

Invasive microstegium vimineum (Japanese stiltgrass) hinders growth and biomass of hardwood seedlings regardless of light and moisture regime

Limited natural oak (Quercus spp.) regeneration in current-day, closed-canopy upland oak forests across the eastern and central United States has prompted increased use of various silvicultural practices, including prescribed fire and/or thinning, to reduce competition from shade-tolerant, often fire-sensitive species, and ultimately, restore and/or maintain oak landscapes. However, these practices create disturbances that can promote the spread of invasive plants and complicate oak restoration attempts, especially if invasion differentially impacts oaks compared to competitor species during early seedling development. To evaluate if Japanese stiltgrass (Microstegium vimineum (Trin.) A. Camus), an invasive C4 grass common in the understory of these systems, impacts growth and biomass of hardwood seedlings in different light and moisture environments, we established a shadehouse experiment in May 2020 with one-year old seedlings of white oak (Quercus alba L.) and two competitor species, red maple (Acer rubrum L.) and sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua L.), in the following treatments: M. vimineum (MV) presence (with/without), light (40/10 % full irradiance), soil moisture (high/low), and their interactions. Monthly, from May to October 2020, we measured seedling height growth, stem basal diameter, and MV cover and height if present. In October 2020, we harvested a subset of seedlings and measured their above- and belowground biomass and aboveground MV biomass when present. At study cessation, regardless of light or moisture treatment, red maple and sweetgum were significantly shorter when grown with MV (17.9 and 15.6 cm, respectively) than without MV (33.5 and 22.3 cm, respectively) and had smaller basal diameters (with MV: 1.03 and 0.94, respectively; without MV: 1.34 and 1.25 cm, respectively) and ∼ two times less biomass. White oak basal diameter was 1.2 times lower with MV (0.77 cm) compared to without MV (0.93 cm), but MV had no impact on white oak height growth or biomass, likely because of its conservative growth strategy and high-water use efficiency. Light and moisture treatments had little impact on MV height and cover, but MV biomass was greater with high (462 dry wt m−2) compared to low (398 g dry wt m−2) moisture treatment and ∼ 1.3 times greater when grown without vs with tree competition. Thus, MV invasion into closed-canopy upland oak forests may have species-specific effects on early seedling growth, reducing growth of competitor seedlings with non-conservative growth strategies more than that of upland oaks, but long-term studies are needed to better understand the potential legacy effects of MV on growing conditions and tree regeneration.

Spatial design improves efficiency and scalability of seed‐based seagrass restoration

Abstract Coastal ecosystem restoration is often ineffective and expensive in practice. As a consequence, upscaling restoration efforts to functionally relevant spatial scales remains one of the largest hurdles for coastal restoration practice. On small scales, restoration success of vegetated ecosystems (i.e. salt marshes and seagrasses) can be amplified by spatial designs that harness positive interactions. However, it remains unknown if positive interactions can be harnessed with seed‐based approaches, that are considered to be more cost‐effective and scalable than traditional shoot‐based restoration methods. Here, we investigated with a full‐factorial seeding experiment if (1) restoration scale (4, 40 and 400 m2) and (2) seeding density (10 and 50 injections/m2) affected multi‐year recruitment efficiency (measured as restored plants/seed injection) of annual eelgrass Zostera marina in the Dutch Wadden Sea. We found that the largest restoration scale (400 m2) increased second‐generation recruitment efficiency by suppressing a sedimentation‐related negative feedback. With increased restoration scale, the inner parts of the restoration plots captured less sediment, which decreased the desiccation stress of the restored eelgrass during low tide. Due to this stress alleviation, plants grew larger and produced more seed‐bearing spathes, which the following year resulted in two and three times higher recruitment efficiency at the largest restoration scale compared to the smaller scales. Moreover, lower seeding density more than doubled second‐generation recruitment efficiency compared to the higher density, supporting recent work showing that the effectiveness of ‘clumped’ spatial designs is context dependent. Synthesis and applications. The efficiency of restoration efforts is seldom taken into account, but can offer restoration projects a valuable metric with which workload, donor material and cost‐requirements can be reduced. We demonstrate that simple modifications to seed‐based coastal restoration designs (e.g. scale and density) can have a substantial impact on recruitment efficiency and multi‐year restoration yields. Thus, optimised restoration designs can strongly contribute to the upscaling potential of coastal ecosystem restoration. However, optimal restoration designs are expected to be strongly context dependent and we therefore argue that investigating optimal designs should be adopted as common practice, providing a crucial steppingstone between ‘proof‐of‐concepts’ and true large‐scale restoration attempts (km2).

Effects of Community Participation in the Restoration of Rumuruti Forest in Laikipia County, Kenya

Reforestation is a concerted effort to discover forest formation, biodiversity, and ecosystem practices through tree planting. There is a drive by international organizations to reclaim about 150 million ha of degraded forests by 2030. The Rumuruti Forest is located in the Laikipia County of Kenya. It is a unique and biodiverse forest renowned for its high density of large mammals, including elephants, lions, leopards, and rhinoceroses. The forest is home to several rare species, such as the upright-horned antelope, the black-faced vervet monkey, and the yellow-necked spurfowl. Rumuruti Forest is an expansive 15,378-acre forest located in Laikipia County, Kenya. These benefits had been offset by rapid habitat loss and degradation despite concerted efforts by the Kenyan government to restore as well as maintain this resource. Besides, previous restoration attempts of Rumuruti forest had been ineffective, as indicated by the widespread withering of recently planted seedlings, resulting in a doubling of replanting operations. A descriptive research design was applied to describe the current state of variables that could be identified. The study's specific objective was to investigate the potential socio-economic benefits of Rumuruti forest restoration to community members. A descriptive research design was applied to describe the current state of variables that could be identified. Research took place in Rumuruti town, Laikipia County, Kenya. It is located 40 km due North of Nyahururu. The geographical coordinates of Rumuruti town are 0.25996°N, 36.53633°E, with a population of 31649 people. The target population for this study was 4,800 people. The sample size was 139 households. The study concluded that the community was considerably more eager to work with the government and NGOs to contribute to the restoration of the Rumuruti forest. The community desired to be more involved in the restoration operations, including tree planting, tendering, and protection. As a result, effective processes were put in place to maximize the potential to achieve optimal regeneration of the Rumuruti forest.

Integrating the resilience concept into ecosystem restoration

Restoring resilient ecosystems is critical to preparing for the uncertain effects of climatic change on ecosystem functioning and socially relevant services. The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration attempts to inspire the global ecological restoration movement, reverse degradation, and mitigate climate change impacts. We present ways in which resilience might be further integrated into the science of restoration ecology and the practice of ecological restoration to address the uncertainty associated with the current impacts of adverse climatic change. We describe how incorporating meaningful community engagement, expanding monitoring indicators, and upscaling across spatial–temporal scales will improve the current state of ecosystem restoration. We present case studies of restoration approaches across Southeast Asia that utilize approaches that confer resilience (resistance, recovery, reorganization) in their restoration projects and their broader social‐ecological systems. The panarchy framework encapsulates the importance of strengthening relationships between all stakeholders and restoration projects to build resilience across larger spatial–temporal scales.

Developing seed‐ and shoot‐based restoration approaches for the seagrass, Zostera muelleri

The restoration of seagrass habitats is a relatively young field with several successful restoration attempts highlighting the feasibility of large‐scale restoration. Successful restoration of seagrass habitats requires an understanding of the most appropriate techniques to use for the target species and local conditions of restoration sites, however, there are currently limited studies on Zostera muelleri. Here, we conduct field trials to explore the use of seed‐ and shoot‐based restoration approaches for Z. muelleri in Victoria, Australia. We assessed the feasibility of collecting and germinating seeds in the field for restoration purposes and trialed the success of four shoot‐based transplanting techniques. We found that seed collections for Z. muelleri were highly successful and scalable, with seed collection rates improving from 489 to 1,939 seeds/hour over 2 years. In addition, in situ seedling germination increased from a maximum of 10.80–25.25% over 2 years. In contrast, shoot‐based restoration approaches were more variable, with plants transplanted with their sediment‐intact outperforming all bare‐rooted approaches. Shoot‐based transplanting approaches appear to have more limited application, but may be appropriate for some restoration sites, or used in combination with seeds to achieve the best restoration outcome. Seed‐based approaches have the potential to be viable and scalable for Z. muelleri given that large numbers of seeds can be collected and stored for at least 7 months before successfully germinating in the field. However, further studies are required to overcome the seedling survival bottleneck (approximately 4 months from emergence) and further increase in situ germination rates.

First Restoration Experiment for Endemic Fucus virsoides on the Western Istrian Coast-Is It Feasible?

Fucus virsoides is an endemic species of the Mediterranean limited to the Adriatic Sea. In recent decades, it has undergone a severe regression, which is well documented in the northern Adriatic. To develop a tool for mitigating this problem, we tested the feasibility of F. virsoides restoration and designed a very simple yet effective method for ex situ cultivation and planting. We also tested the effect of positioning in the upper vs. lower intertidal on the growth of F. virsoides. After planting, the algae reached fertility in nine months, which was followed by a period of stagnation and reduction in size due to grazing and fouling. There were some differences in growth of the algae according to positioning in the intertidal at different measurement times, but that had little impact on the overall success of the restoration experiment. This represents, to our knowledge, the first successful F. virsoides ex situ cultivation and restoration attempt.

Effects of historical management on the vegetation and habitat properties of wet meadows in Germany

Wet meadows in Germany are of high conservational value with a strong decline over the last centuries. Occasionally, new meadows developed, providing us with the opportunity to compare vegetation and habitat properties of wet meadows with currently similar, but different historical management. We categorized the areas as ancient, old or young, according to the point of establishment and grassland continuity in the last two centuries. Several trends derived from other grassland types proved also to be true for wet meadows like a high diversity of vascular plants and Red List species in long‐term managed grasslands. Old grasslands, established one to two centuries ago, exhibited the highest diversity of vascular plants and bryophytes, indicating additional plants arrived by seeding. We investigated species composition using ordination and indicator species. Ancient grasslands were characterized by plants adapted to wet meadows (Molinietalia) such as Rhinanthus serotinus. Young meadows were marked by plants revealing succession like Carex brizoides or a high productivity. A trend, contrary to other grassland types, was that most habitat properties exhibited no temporal pattern except habitat area and few soil attributes. Altogether, a stepwise intensification from ancient to young meadows was detected that reflects the fast development from traditional to modern agriculture. Including the grassland's history in conservation approaches and adapting the management accordingly will improve restoration attempts. Ancient and old grasslands provided more appropriate species for future wet meadows, whereas young grasslands often need a more intensive land use and would benefit from seeding to develop to species‐rich meadows.

Reducing Exotic Annual Grass Competition did not Improve Shrub Restoration Success During a Drought

Restoration of native shrub species is challenging but direly needed in arid and semiarid rangelands globally as native shrubs provide critical habitat for wildlife and livestock forage. Restoration of antelope bitterbrush (Purshia tridentata Pursh DC), a wildlife-important shrub, is often a priority on western US rangelands. One challenge to bitterbrush restoration is competitive exotic annual grasses. Exotic annual grasses can be successfully controlled with pre-emergent herbicides, but the effects of controlling exotic annual grasses with pre-emergent herbicides on bitterbrush survival and growth are unknown. We evaluated the effects of applying a pre-emergent herbicide, imazapic, to control exotic annual grasses on planted bitterbrush seedlings and existing vegetation for 2 yr post treatment at five sites in southeastern Oregon. Imazapic application reduced exotic annual grass cover and density but did not improve bitterbrush establishment. Exotic annual grass control did lead to an increase in native perennial bunchgrass cover. We suspect the lack of treatment effect was caused by high mortality of bitterbrush seedlings from drought in the first year. By the second year, bitterbrush was largely lost across the study sites with only four individuals surviving. The high bitterbrush seedling mortality observed in this study highlights that multiple barriers to restoration success likely exist in arid and semiarid rangelands. For successful restoration, land managers and restoration practitioners need to have a plan and resources for overcoming multiple barriers, which may require several restoration attempts should initial attempts be unsuccessful.

Gongolaria barbata forest in the shallow lagoon on the southern Istrian Coast (northern Adriatic Sea)

Abstract The Gongolaria barbata forest inhabiting Šćuza lagoon on the southern Istrian coast (northern Adriatic) represents the last significant refuge for this species among the shallow waters of the Istrian Coast. The lagoon is characterised by extreme winter and summer temperatures. Moreover, the absence of certain grazers could be one of the main factors favouring the development and growth of G. barbata forest. Two morphologically distinct forms of G. barbata inhabit the lagoon: attached and detached. Abundance and morphological characteristics of each form were analysed in randomly sampled thalli. The wet weight, thallus length, number of cauloids and total cauloid length were significantly higher in the detached than in the attached form. Although the main cauloid was highly branched in both forms, its total length was up to three times higher in the detached than in the attached form. Our study suggests that this population of G. barbata can thrive in the extreme conditions found in the lagoon, while also exhibiting two distinct forms. Furthermore, this large population could serve as a donor for future restoration attempts on the western Istrian Coast where a decline of G. barbata has been confirmed in recent years.

Quantifying the Reporting, Coverage and Consistency of Key Indicators in Mangrove Restoration Projects

Mangroves are often cleared for aquaculture, agriculture, and coastal development despite the range of benefits for people and nature that they provide. In response to these losses, there are multiple global, and regional efforts aimed at accelerating mangrove forest restoration, resulting in many restoration projects being implemented and managed by different groups with highly diverse objectives. The information reported from these restoration projects is extremely variable, limiting our ability to identify whether desired objectives have been met or key factors that determine effective and durable restoration have been applied. To address this problem, we developed a holistic monitoring framework that captures the key indicators of restoration, spanning project aims, intervention type, costs, and ecological and socioeconomic outcomes. Subsequently, using a systematic literature search, we examined 123 published case studies to identify the range and quality of reported information on restoration, relative to our framework. We found that there were many gaps in reporting, for multiple indicators. Sections related to site conditions prior to restoration (reported in only 32% of case studies) and socioeconomic outcomes (26%) were consistently missing from most project reporting. Conversely, information on the type of intervention was reported for all case studies, and the aims of the project (reported in 76% of case studies) and ecological monitoring (82%) were far more prevalent. Generally, the restoration literature did not follow any specific framework in terms of reporting which likely contributed to the gaps in the information recorded. These gaps hinder comparisons between case studies, inhibiting the ability to learn lessons from previous restoration attempts by identifying commonalities. The need for more structure and consistent reporting supports the development of a standard restoration tracking tool that can facilitate the comparison of restoration efforts, aiding the implementation of future projects.