Application of ecological principles in restoration of degraded habitats

Ecological principles in restoration of degraded habitats

1. APPLICATION OF ECOLOGICAL CONCEPTS IN RESTORATION OF HABITATS Madhab Chandra Behera Asst. Professor Dept. of Natural Resources Managemenrt College of Forestry OUAT, Bhubaneswar

2. A discrete unit of space in which one organism interacts with the biotic components and exchanges the matter and energy required is termed as ECOSYSTEM ECOLOGY : The comprehensive science of the relationship of the organism to the Environment. ( Ernst Haeckel (1869)

3. ECOLOGICAL HIERARCHY

4. A distinct living entity which carries out all life processes in its body and separates those in other individuals. Grouping of similar individuals living in a particular geographical area or space is known as population. Individual (Organism): Population: SPECIES

5. Sal Population

6. SPECIES AND POPULATION OF SNAIL REPRODUCTION AMONG INDIVIDUALS IN POPULATION

7. Sal Tree Community COMMUNITY

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9. ORGANISM, POPULATION, COMMUNITY

10. HABITAT AND NICHE Environment influences organisms, and organisms affect the environment. HABITAT: T he space/ Place where the organism Lives :(Address) Baula ( Crocodylus porosus ) - Creeks and the estuaries Salt water - Mud planes Gharial ( Gavialis gangeticus )  - River systems of Indian Subcontinent -Flowing rivers -High sand banks 

11. Niche—Role Niche— T he functional role performed by an organism in its surroundings (its profession). THE NICHE OF A DANDELION A dandelion is a familiar plant that commonly invades disturbed sites because it produces many seeds that are blown easily to new areas. It serves as food for various herbivores, supplies nectar to bees, and can regrow quickly from its root if its leaves are removed.

12. APPLICATION OF ECOLOGICAL CONCEPTS IN RESTORATION OF HABITATS BIODIVERSITY CONCEPTS: General understandings bout ecosystems and ecosystem management. Ecological concepts: Ecological concepts are general understandings (or facts) about ecosystems and ecosystem management Management concepts: Tools that can be applied to support some of the applications.

13. APPLICATION OF ECOLOGICAL CONCEPTS IN RESTORATION OF HABITATS Levels of biological organization Native species Keystone Population viability/ thresholds Disturbances Ecological resilience Connectivity/fragmentation   BIOVIVERSITY CONCEPTS :

14. 1. Levels of biological organization REGIONS LANDSCAPES ECOSYSTEMS COMMUNITIES SPECIES POPULATIONS INDIVIDUAL The interdependence of scales needs to be understood and assessed in order to conserve biodiversity Spatial and temporal dimensions in ecological processes i.e. Ecosystem panarchy .

15. 2. NATIVE SPECIES (Endemism) Those that naturally exist at a given location or in a particular ecosystem Though native species are exacting to a landscape; Invasive alien species have the potential to displace native species and threaten to ecosystems composition, structure and function. HENCE MANAGEMENT OF ALIEN SPECIES IS ESSENTIAL.

16. 3. NATIVE SPECIES (Endemism) Keystone: -species   -Ecosystem -Processes Interaction with other species or impact on ecosystem modification Habitat harboring a large portion or critical elements of an area’s biodiversity ex- estuaries, Riparian ecosystem near river etc. Processes fundamental to ecosystem function ex-fire, pollination etc

17. 4. Population viability/ thresholds Extinction threshold -Minimum viable population Minimum habitat required for a species/ population Identifying the causes of population decline like inbreeding, inability to find a mate etc.

18. 5. Disturbances Natural Man made Identifying the endogenic or exogenic forces Reducing or eliminating the causal forces & assisting ecosystem towards recovery

19. 6. Ecological resilience Capacity of an ecosystem to cope with disturbance or stress and return to a stable state Measuring the stress limit of the system Identifying slow variables of the system that buffers the change like species diversity & abundance, regional environmental variation etc. Identifying the functional diversity and response diversity of the ecosystem important to maintain ecological resilience.

20. 7. Connectivity/fragmentation Ecosystem structure facilitating movement of organisms between resource patches. Animal corridor identification and preservation Reduce isolation and fragmentation of populations Effects of inbreeding and reduced genetic diversity can be reduced Re-establishment of populations that have been reduced or eliminated due to random events

21. ECOSYSTEM MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS Ecosystem management concepts provide a framework for planning biodiversity conservation. Island biogeography theory Niche Theory Population theory Community ecology Food web/Trophic theory Modeling and simulations Paleoecology , climate change

22. A. Island biogeography theory Dispersal limitation Establishment limitation   Persistence limitation Assisted regeneration and add perches to facilitate bird dispersal Provide high habitat heterogeneity, import substrate, amend soil and eliminate alien species Restore large habitat blocks, minimize fragmentation and provide corridor between habitat blocks

23. B. Niche Theory Safe site- Increase micro-topographic heterogeneity to improve germination Fundamental and realised niche- Plant species in suitable microsites , conduct pilot plantings to identify suitable habitats and plant more broadly in 2 nd Phase Ecotypic variation- Plant appropriate genotypes and provide genetic variation for future selection Self design theory- Establish physical and chemical conditions that will favor desired species, anticipate changes, and assume that species will ‘find’ suitable habitats.

24. B. Niche Theory Assembly rule- Prepare site so that it will support late- succession species, plant them early and combine compatible species (e.g. members of different functional groups)   Succession- Trajectories of ecosystem degradation and recovery, natural variability, linear and nonlinear dynamics, multiple stable states vs. ordered succession etc.

25. C. Population Theory Minimum viable populations – Introduce larger numbers of propagules Metapopulation dynamics – Provide multiple habitat patches and dispersal corridors Competition theory – Competitive exclusion. Tend plantings to speed growth (fertilize, mulch, weed, control herbivory and treat disease) Priority effects – Introduce desired species early and introduce larger and/or older individuals to shorten the time to dominance

26. C. Population Theory Facilitation – Provide nurse plants or surrogate structures to trap seeds and/or reduce stress on s eedlings ; plant individuals in clusters; and inoculate soil with mycorrhizae Invasion theory (exotic species)- Remove invaders by hand or machine; use herbicides or pesticides; smother with black plastic or mulch; introduce fast-growing cover crops

27. D. Community Ecology Community composition, coexistence of species, assembly theory, alternative successional pathways, sensitivity to initial conditions, predation, trophic structure, dispersal, environmental filters, disturbance regimes, mutualism

28. E. Community Ecology Trophic cascades, bottom-up/top-down dynamics, food-web networks, productivity and food-web structure, plant-herbivore interactions, predator- prey theory, indirect interactions

29. F. Modeling and simulations Prediction of restoration outcomes G. Modeling and simulations Planning restoration with the context of expected Global change