Ecological Factors Preventing Restoration of Degraded Short Tussock Landscapes in New Zealand’s Dryland Zone

Rodrigues, Anna Paula; Moltchanova, Elena; Norton, David A.; Turnbull, Matthew H.

doi:10.1515/opag-2017-0048

Cited by 2 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…Monitoring a broad range of variables describing aspects of ecosystem functioning, such as soil carbon or nutrient levels, would maximise the value of exclosure plots. Moreover, combining exclosure plots with other experimental and situational treatments, such as burning , irrigation (Rodrigues et al 2017), or planting woody species would enhance their value by enabling evaluation of interactive effects of multiple factors.…”

Section: Research Needsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Rose et al 2004;Mark & Dickinson 2003). For example, experimental studies suggest varying success of woody germination due to variations in soil biota and microclimatic conditions (Williams et al 2011;Rodrigues et al 2017), suggesting woody thickening in future drier climates needs to be considered. In our opinion, emphasis on afforestation efforts in grasslands of NZ neglects evidence that some areas in lowlands may not have supported closed forest in the past (Molloy et al 1963;McGlone 2001;Walker et al 2004) and therefore needs to be carefully considered in each case.…”

Section: Current Understandingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Relating tussock cover to other components of biodiversity and ecosystem functions could enhance understanding of impacts of vegetation change at spatial scales larger than plots or transects (Hua & Ohlemüller 2018;West 2019). For instance, there may be non-linear relationships between tussock cover and native plant diversity where high cover provides microclimates for native plants but too much cover may reduce diversity due to competition for soil resources (Adair et al 2019) or shading effects (Rodrigues et al 2017). Native plant diversity may affect other trophic groups by altering resources for native herbivores, pollinators, and seed dispersers, such as invertebrates, birds, and skinks (Patterson 1992;de Sassi & Tylianakis 2012;Young et al 2012;Wotton et al 2016), but such effects are difficult to predict with current data.…”

Section: Tussock Cover As a Potential Indicator Of Biodiversity And E...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Effective management of tussock grasslands can be improved by better understanding the nature and quality of ecosystem functions in tussock grasslands, and how they vary along environmental gradients and spatiotemporal scales in different types of grassland. In areas where woody thickening by native species is a realistic aim for the future, this will likely not be achieved by removing grazing alone because invasive vertebrate pests are widespread, soils have been highly modified (or depleted), seed sources have been lost, and there are few suitable microsites for seeds to germinate and seedlings to establish (Rodrigues et al 2017). Ecosystem functions cannot be maximised across all ecosystem components, so we believe research on trade-offs, values, and across scales in time and space is crucial.…”

Section: Conclusion and Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Predicting ecological change in tussock grasslands of Aotearoa New Zealand

Day,

Barratt,

Christensen

et al. 2023

NZJE

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Natural grasslands are among the most threatened biomes on Earth. They are under pressure from land cover change including afforestation, farming intensification, invasive species, altered fire regimes, and soil amendments, all of which impact native biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. In Aotearoa New Zealand, tussock-dominated native grasslands expanded due to increased fire activity during waves of human settlement. These areas have subsequently been maintained as modified grasslands by agricultural pastoral land management practices and effects of introduced feral mammals. Despite many decades of research on biodiversity in tussock grasslands, we need greater fundamental understanding of many processes causing change in their biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in order to predict how future global change will impact this important and increasingly threatened biome. In this perspective forum article, we present five key research questions that, if answered, would greatly enhance our understanding of connections between tussock grassland biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and associated ecosystem services: (1) What are the relative impacts of domesticated and non-domesticated mammals on indigenous biodiversity in grasslands? (2) Where will invasive plants undergo range expansion? (3) Will future fires tip tussock grasslands into alternative vegetation states? (4) What are the implications of woody thickening by native or non-native species? (5) What are the impacts of global change, and vegetation change in particular, on soil processes and ecosystem functioning? We provide recommendations for research to address and integrate across these questions using both existing and new data. This work would build on our current knowledge and lead to a framework to better understand the ecological impacts of ongoing global change in tussock grasslands.

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Section: Research Needsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Current Understandingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Tussock Cover As a Potential Indicator Of Biodiversity And E...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Conclusion and Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Predicting ecological change in tussock grasslands of Aotearoa New Zealand

Day,

Barratt,

Christensen

et al. 2023

NZJE

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Herbivory limits success of vegetation restoration globally

Xu,

Silliman,

Chen

et al. 2023

Science

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Restoring vegetation in degraded ecosystems is an increasingly common practice for promoting biodiversity and ecological function, but successful implementation is hampered by an incomplete understanding of the processes that limit restoration success. By synthesizing terrestrial and aquatic studies globally (2594 experimental tests from 610 articles), we reveal substantial herbivore control of vegetation under restoration. Herbivores at restoration sites reduced vegetation abundance more strongly (by 89%, on average) than those at relatively undegraded sites and suppressed, rather than fostered, plant diversity. These effects were particularly pronounced in regions with higher temperatures and lower precipitation. Excluding targeted herbivores temporarily or introducing their predators improved restoration by magnitudes similar to or greater than those achieved by managing plant competition or facilitation. Thus, managing herbivory is a promising strategy for enhancing vegetation restoration efforts.

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Ecological Factors Preventing Restoration of Degraded Short Tussock Landscapes in New Zealand’s Dryland Zone

Abstract: Open Agriculture. 2017; 2: 442-452 the microclimate, soil aeration, and water availability to seedlings.

Cited by 2 publications

References 52 publications

Predicting ecological change in tussock grasslands of Aotearoa New Zealand

Predicting ecological change in tussock grasslands of Aotearoa New Zealand

Herbivory limits success of vegetation restoration globally

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