Herbivory and plant growth rate determine the success of El Niño Southern Oscillation‐driven tree establishment in semiarid South America

Holmgren, Milena; López, Bernat Claramunt; Gutiérrez, Julio R.; Squeo, Francisco A.

doi:10.1111/j.1365-2486.2006.01261.x

Cited by 97 publications

(110 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…1). Climatic windows of opportunity have proved effective in the regeneration and restoration of arid and semiarid plant communities in various regions of the world (Holmgren et al 2006;Holmgren and Scheffer 2001;Sitters et al 2012). Wet summers are rare events in Mediterranean regions characterised by a summer drought, but experimental results suggest they can strongly boost the abundance and diversity of recruiting woody species (Matías et al 2011).…”

Section: Persistence Of Shrublandsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pathways for resilience in Mediterranean cork oak land use systems

Acácio¹,

Holmgren²

2012

Annals of Forest Science

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Context Loss of woodlands and degradation of vegetation and soil have been described for all Mediterranean-type ecosystems worldwide. In the Western Iberian Peninsula, overexploitation of evergreen cork oak land use systems has led to soil erosion, failures in oak recruitment, and loss of forests. Degraded and dry sites are quickly colonised by pioneer heathland rockrose (Cistus spp.) shrubs forming highly persistent patches. Aims Although traditionally shrublands have been considered as a transient successional state, we present evidence that they can represent persistent alternative states to former cork oak forests. Review trends and conclusions We first describe how Mediterranean vegetation evolved in the Iberian Peninsula and the role of fire and long-term human management as main disturbances. We then discuss alternative pathways through state-and-transition models indicating the ecological and land use variables that halt cork oak regeneration and recruitment and drive vegetation transitions towards persistent shrublands. Unless concerted management actions and restoration programmes are undertaken, the cork oak land use systems will not be sustainable.

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Section: Persistence Of Shrublandsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pathways for resilience in Mediterranean cork oak land use systems

Acácio¹,

Holmgren²

2012

Annals of Forest Science

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“…The long-term persistence of windward migrating forest patches requires the regeneration of patches downwind. The mechanisms for formation of these patches are unknown, and may be associated with exceptional weather events, such as large El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events, as is the case for tree recruitment in other semi-arid locations (Holmgren et al 2006).…”

Section: Forest Patches As Self-organizing Ecosystemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Forest patch symmetry depends on direction of limiting resource delivery

et al. 2013

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Abstract. Edge effects are a major concern in the study and conservation of forest patches. The traditional perspective, derived from patches formed by fragmentation, considers forest edges as intermediates in a gradient between interior and exterior conditions, symmetrically distributed around the core of the patch. We present a more general conceptual model that shows that this perspective is only one of several possible environmental gradients across forest patches. When resources are delivered horizontally (e.g., fog, surface runoff ), environmental parameters and species composition are expected to have very different, asymmetric, distributions within forest patches. We conducted transect surveys characterizing environmental conditions (light, soil moisture, soil nutrients), vegetation structure and species composition in fog-fed patches of relict temperate forest in northern Chile. Windward edges differed most from the surrounding scrubland, whereas the core merely represented an intermediate between windward and leeward edges. Community composition changed drastically from temperate forest specialists on the windward edge to mediterranean shrub species leeward. The simple edge-core model is shown to be inadequate for describing spatial patterns in fog-influenced forests: a more universal model including the directionality of external resource inputs and internal dynamics must be considered when evaluating forest patch dynamics.

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“…In combination these technological advances have been shown to be critical in establishing sufficient plants for successful restoration in some systems (e.g., Turner et al 2006). The vagaries of climate often influence recruitment and better predictions of climatic oscillations (e.g., El Nino phases) may aid restoration planning to improve plant establishment success in combination with these technological advancements (Holmgren et al 2006).…”

Section: Restoring Species Composition Requires More Than Just Plantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advances in restoration ecology: rising to the challenges of the coming decades

et al. 2015

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Abstract. Simultaneous environmental changes challenge biodiversity persistence and human wellbeing. The science and practice of restoration ecology, in collaboration with other disciplines, can contribute to overcoming these challenges. This endeavor requires a solid conceptual foundation based in empirical research which confronts, tests and influences theoretical developments. We review conceptual developments in restoration ecology over the last 30 years. We frame our review in the context of changing restoration goals which reflect increased societal awareness of the scale of environmental degradation and the recognition that inter-disciplinary approaches are needed to tackle environmental problems. Restoration ecology now encompasses facilitative interactions and network dynamics, trophic cascades, and above-and belowground linkages. It operates in a non-equilibrium, alternative states framework, at the landscape scale, and in response to changing environmental, economic and social conditions. Progress has been marked by conceptual advances in the fields of trait-environment relationships, community assembly, and understanding the links between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Conceptual and practical advances have been enhanced by applying evolving technologies, including treatments to increase seed germination and overcome recruitment bottlenecks, high throughput DNA sequencing to elucidate soil community structure and function, and advances in satellite technology and GPS tracking to monitor habitat use. The synthesis of these technologies with systematic reviews of context dependencies in restoration success, model based analyses and consideration of complex socioecological systems will allow generalizations to inform evidence based interventions. Ongoing challenges include setting realistic, socially acceptable goals for restoration under changing environmental conditions, and prioritizing actions in an increasingly space-competitive world. Ethical questions also surround the use of genetically modified material, translocations, taxon substitutions, and de-extinction, in restoration ecology. Addressing these issues, as the Ecological Society of America looks to its next century, will require current and future generations of researchers and practitioners, including economists, engineers, philosophers, landscape architects, social scientists and restoration ecologists, to work together with communities and governments to rise to the environmental challenges of the coming decades.

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Herbivory and plant growth rate determine the success of El Niño Southern Oscillation‐driven tree establishment in semiarid South America

Cited by 97 publications

References 35 publications

Pathways for resilience in Mediterranean cork oak land use systems

Pathways for resilience in Mediterranean cork oak land use systems

Forest patch symmetry depends on direction of limiting resource delivery

Advances in restoration ecology: rising to the challenges of the coming decades

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