Article (Scientific journals)
Resilience and restoration of tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and grassy woodlands
Buisson, E.; Le Stradic, S.; Silveira, F. A. O. et al.
2019In Biological Reviews
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Abstract :
[en] Despite growing recognition of the conservation values of grassy biomes, our understanding of how to maintain and restore biodiverse tropical grasslands (including savannas and open-canopy grassy woodlands) remains limited. To incorporate grasslands into large-scale restoration efforts, we synthesised existing ecological knowledge of tropical grassland resilience and approaches to plant community restoration. Tropical grassland plant communities are resilient to, and often dependent on, the endogenous disturbances with which they evolved – frequent fires and native megafaunal herbivory. In stark contrast, tropical grasslands are extremely vulnerable to human-caused exogenous disturbances, particularly those that alter soils and destroy belowground biomass (e.g. tillage agriculture, surface mining); tropical grassland restoration after severe soil disturbances is expensive and rarely achieves management targets. Where grasslands have been degraded by altered disturbance regimes (e.g. fire exclusion), exotic plant invasions, or afforestation, restoration efforts can recreate vegetation structure (i.e. historical tree density and herbaceous ground cover), but species-diverse plant communities, including endemic species, are slow to recover. Complicating plant-community restoration efforts, many tropical grassland species, particularly those that invest in underground storage organs, are difficult to propagate and re-establish. To guide restoration decisions, we draw on the old-growth grassland concept, the novel ecosystem concept, and theory regarding tree cover along resource gradients in savannas to propose a conceptual framework that classifies tropical grasslands into three broad ecosystem states. These states are: (1) old-growth grasslands (i.e. ancient, biodiverse grassy ecosystems), where management should focus on the maintenance of disturbance regimes; (2) hybrid grasslands, where restoration should emphasise a return towards the old-growth state; and (3) novel ecosystems, where the magnitude of environmental change (i.e. a shift to an alternative ecosystem state) or the socioecological context preclude a return to historical conditions. © 2018 Cambridge Philosophical Society
Disciplines :
Environmental sciences & ecology
Author, co-author :
Buisson, E.;  Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie marine et continentale (IMBE), Université d'Avignon et des Pays de Vaucluse, CNRS, IRD, Aix Marseille Université, Agroparc BP61207, Avignon cedex 9, 84911, France
Le Stradic, S.;  Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, Biodiversity and Landscape unit, University of Liege, Gembloux, 5030, Belgium, Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Instituto de Biociências, Departamento de Botânica, Lab of Vegetation Ecology, Av. 24A, 1515, Rio Claro, SP 13506-900, Brazil
Silveira, F. A. O.;  Departamento de Botânica, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG 30161-901, Brazil
Durigan, G.;  Laboratório de Ecologia e Hidrologia Florestal, Floresta Estadual de Assis, Instituto Florestal, PO box 104, Assis, SP 19802-970, Brazil
Overbeck, G. E.;  Departamento de Botânica, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS 91501-970, Brazil
Fidelis, A.;  Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Instituto de Biociências, Departamento de Botânica, Lab of Vegetation Ecology, Av. 24A, 1515, Rio Claro, SP 13506-900, Brazil
Fernandes, G. W.;  Ecologia Evolutiva e Biodiversidade, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG 30161-901, Brazil
Bond, W. J.;  Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cape Town and South African Environmental Observation Network, NRF, Rondebosch, 7701, South Africa
Hermann, J.-M.;  Restoration Ecology, Center of Life and Food Sciences Weihenstephan, Technische Universität München – TUM, Freising, Germany
Mahy, Grégory ;  Université de Liège - ULiège > Ingénierie des biosystèmes (Biose) > Biodiversité et Paysage
Alvarado, S. T.;  Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Instituto de Geociências e Ciências Exatas, Departamento de Geografia, Ecosystem Dynamics Observatory, Av. 24A, 1515, Rio Claro, SP 13506-900, Brazil
Zaloumis, N. P.;  Department of Botany, University of Cape Town, P/Bag X3, Cape Town, Rondebosch, 7701, South Africa
Veldman, J. W.;  Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-2138, United States
More authors (3 more) Less
Language :
English
Title :
Resilience and restoration of tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and grassy woodlands
Publication date :
2019
Journal title :
Biological Reviews
ISSN :
1464-7931
eISSN :
1469-185X
Publisher :
Wiley
Peer reviewed :
Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi
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