Restoration Ecology - Week 5

Biological, Physical, and Chemical Factors / Social and Cultural Factors

I. Biological Factors
A. Availability of propagules
1. in situ (natural)
a. e.g., S.FL hammock canopy species, papaya?
b. e.g., "clear cuts were generally dominated by communities composed of species such as fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium), thistle (Cirsium spp.), and pearly everlasting (Anaphilis margaritacea). These could be viewed as pre-adapted weedy communities that vigourously sprouted after their aerial parts were destroyed and pushed up throught the layers of tephra.
2. ex situ (natural)
a. e.g., % phases represented at La Selva (Opler et al. in Cairns et al. 1977)
i. low herb - Erechites, Borreria, Drymaria
ii. grass and sedge - Cyperus, Panicum, Axonopsus
iii. subshrub - Phytolacca, Sida, Hyptis
iv. shrub and herbaceous vine - Hamelia, Piper, Cassia, Solanum
v. small tree
3. ex situ (artificial)
a. e.g., grass reseeding after Mt. St Helens ($20,000,000)
b. e.g., reestablishment of cabbage palms at Cape Florida
B. Facilitation and mutualism
1. Mycorrhizae (90% of all plants)
a. Early as the 1930's researchers showed that when bare-rooted trees were transplanted into prairie soils only those that were deliberately inoculated with ectomycorrhizal fungi survived
b. Types of Mycorrhizae
i. ectomycorrhizae or sheathing mycorrhize (EM)
ii. vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizae (VAM) - root cortex
iii. ectendomycorrhizae or ericoid type - produce mantle and hyphae in root cortex
c. e.g., "At Cedar Camp, adding less than half a cup of soil from the root zone of a healthy conifer plantation to each planting hole doubled growth and increased survival of conifer seedlings by 50% in the first year following outplanting." (Perry and Amaranthus in Berger 1990)
2. Other soil microbes
3. Pollinators (especially in the tropics)
a. e.g., durian, mangroves, and bats
4. Dispersers (more important in the tropics)
a. e.g., parrots and palms
C. Species replacement
1. Inhibition (early pioneers outcompete the later arrivals)
a. e.g., bracken inhibits shrub establishment
2. Tolerance (later outcompete earliers arrivals)
b e.g., oaks and pines
3. Exotics - competitive replacements
a. e.g., "In the Monterey Bay coastal dunes, for example, some restoration projects have introduced exotic species along with the natives. Some exotics, like statice (Limonium spp.), introduced by the California Dept. of Transportation . . ., are a minor but necesssary nuisance. Others, like the Hottentot-fig ice plant (Carpobrotus edulis) and European dune grass (Ammophila arenaria), are extremely invasive. . . . Even the use of native California plants does not automatically guarantee project success if those particular species are not a natural part of the community found at the site. In another unfortunate example from the Highway 1 freeway project through the City of Marina, landscapers used the common brigh orange California poppy (Eschscholzia californica), apparently without realizing that in the Marina Dunes, the proper plant should be the coastal variety of the California poppy, E. californica maritima, which has a predominantly yellow flower." (Shonman in Berger 1990).
D. Minimum viable populations (MVP) & minimum dynamic area (MDA)
1. e.g., Guanacaste National Park too small for some large mammals. "For large vertebrates such as the jaguar, mountain lion, and tapir, the breeding population in Santa Rosa (10 to 50 individuals) is simply not large enough to avoid inbreeding and subsequent genetic decay, genetic drift, and obliteration by disease epidemics. The same applies to at least 30 species of large dry forest trees in Santa Rosa." Janzen in Cairns, ed. 1988).
E. Keystone Species
1. e.g., "There is an important, but often overlooked, aspect of the loss of tropical animals from a habitat. Almost all play conspicuous roles in internal habitat structure through seed dispersal, seed predation, selective browsing, pollination, predation on herbivores, etc." Janzen in Cairns, ed. 1988).
II. Physical Factors
A. Microclimate
1. Insolation
a. insolation - e.g., biomass removal
b. decreased insolation - e.g., exotic canopies
c. e.g., "The variability of insolation, wind, and fog exposure across habitats affects the distribution and abundance of four endangered butterfly taxa for which habitat restoration is being attempted." (Weiss and Murphy in Berger 1990)
2. Temperature
a. Increased temperature
b. Greater fluctuations
3. Humidity
a. Decreased humidity
4. Water
a. Increase ET
b. Increase percolation
B. Geomorphology & Soils
1. Geomorphology
a. Destroyed topography
b. Abrupt transitions
c. Artificial landforms
d. Harsh aspects
e. Erosion - can be controlled through terracing and geotextiles (Overhead # _ )

2. Soils
a. Destroyed structure and texture
b. Loss of topsoil
c. Soil compaction & surface induration
i. e.g., Imprintation is a mechanical process that converts the smooth-sealed and compacted desertified soil surface into a rough-open surface with rapid infiltration and excellent rainwater retention." Dixon in Berger (1990)
C. Hydrology
1. Decreased hydroperiod
2. Decreased stage
3. Alterred timing
4. Decrease natural fluctuations
5. Acid-mine drainage
D. Fire
1. Decreased fire frequency
2. Increaed fire frequency
3. Wrong-season fires
III. Chemical Factors
A. Nutrient cycling and availability - add or remove nutrients
1. Too little or too much - N
2. Too little or too much - P
3. Low availability of cations
B. Low pH - add lime
1. absorption of P, CA, Mg, and K is inhibited
2. Al, Mn and sometimes FE, Cu, Zn, and Ni can become more available
3. N fixation inhibited, inadequate mycorrhizal activity
C. Soil contaminants - phytoremediation
1. Pb (Thlaspi rotundifolia accumulates slowly), As, Cd & Zn (Thlaspi caerulescens - alpine penny cress), Hg
2. Organic chemicals
3. Oil and tars
4. Combustibles
5. Radioactive materials
6. Biologically active materials
7. Asbestos and other hazardous minerals
8. Corrosive materials
D. Air contaminants
1. SO2 and Mt Mitchell
IV. Social and Cultural Factors
A. Reasons for Restoration
1. Legal Obligations
a. Surface Mining and Control and Reclamation Act refer to land reclamation not restoration. ". . . land must be returned to a 'higher or better use.'"
b. Ohio code stocking rate of 600 trees per hectare, 450 trees at end of 5 year period
2. Moral and Philosophical Perspectives - Turner says that there are four main thoughts in the ecology movement with respect to the view of nature
a. Conservationists - nature is a vast resource to be wisely used for humans
b. Preservationists - nature is of intrinsic value, especially when untouched by humans. "Wilderness Act of 1964 - a wilderness is an area where "in contrast to those areas where man and his works dominate the landscape . . . the earth and its community of life untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor and does not remain." Kane p. 70
c. Restorationists - nature can be reconstructed, and its the role of humans to do so. "The salient point is that, whereas environmentalism has tended toward a kind of idealism in its conception of nature, restoration is relentlessly pragmatic. It asks not how nature may be kept pure and uncontaminated but rather just how it is actually being affected by human activities, and how this influence can be reversed." "One cannot duplicate a natural system root hair for root hair and bird for bird, but there is no reason to try to do this. What is called for, rather, is the reassembly of a system that acts like the original. Jordan in Baldwin et al. 1994"
d. Inventionists -
3. Aesthetics
4. Recreational - Guanacaste National Park - user-friendly park must have a variety of areas and habitats that are freely open to moderate to heavy public educational and recreational use
5. Ecological


Perspective Nature's Value
Conservationists Humanistic Pragmatic United
Preservationsists Intrinsic Idealic Separate
Restorationists Intrinsic & Humanistic Idealic & Pragmatic United
Inventionists Humanistic & Intrinsic Idealic & Pragmatic United

ECOLOGY OF SOUTHERN FLORIDA
I. FLORIDA'S CLIMATE
A. Classification - southern tip of Florida tropical dry (Aw), rest of Florida subtropical humid (Cf)
B. Temperature - No part of Florida is more than 80 miles from a large body of water
C. Precipitation - Summer rainfall due to convective rains, sea breezes, tropical storms and hurricanes. Miami receives much of its summer rainfall when the winds are from the southwest, keeping the onshore sea breeze near the coast - produces heavy rain and lightening. Dry season from November to May. More lightening occurs in Florida than in any other place in the US (EF)
D. Winds - Sea breeze may be felt as much as 25km inland
E. Hurricanes
1. In a typical year, more than a hundred disturbances in the Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf have the potential to form hurricanes, only about 5 develop into hurricanes (winds greater than 64 knots)
2. Coasts from Florida Bay to Melbourne and Pensacola to Pananma City have the highest risk of hurricanes (expected rate of one every 6-8 years)

II. HYDROLOGY
A. Introduction
1. "In the Everglades one is most aware of the superb monotony of saw grass under the world of air. But below that and before it, enclosing and causing it, is the water. M.S. Douglas p. 8.
2. Facts
a. Lake Okeechobee 730 sq miles
b. Original Everglades basin extended from headwaters of Kissimme River to Florida Bay some 9,000 square miles
c. River of Grass averages 40 miles wide and 100 miles long, gradient of 2.5" per mile
B. Definitions
1. Hydrology - the study of the occurence, distribution, movement and chemistry of water, particularly groundwater
2. Groundwater - subsurface water that occurs beneath the water table in soils and geologic formations that are fully saturated
C. Wetlands
1. Wetlands - transitional areas between terrestrial and aquatic systems where the water table is usually at or near the surface or the land is covered by shallow water (Fish and Wildlife)
2. Boundaries
a. Terrestrial limit
i. the boundary between land with predominantly hydrophytic cover and land with predominantly mesophytic or xerophytic cover
ii. the boundary between soil that is predominantly hydric adn soil that is predominantly non-hydric
iii. for wetlands without vegetation or soil - the boundary betwen land that is flooded or non-saturated at some time of the year and land that is not
b. Aquatic limit - 2m the maximum depths at which emergent plants usually grow
3. Saltwater intrusion
a. freshwater dispersion extends as much as 8 miles seawasrd during rainy season
b. saltwater movers 3-6 miles inland and up

III. GEOLOGY
A. Introduction - To understand the Everglades one must first understand the rock. M.S. Douglas p. 17.
B. General Characteristics
1. S. Florida underlain by ca. 20,000 feet of shallow marine carbonate sediments from Jurassic to Holocene. These occur above a mantle of volcanic rocks.
2. Deep stratigraphic sections elucidated by oil exploration in the late 1940's. Sunniland Formation chief oil producing formation. Oil first discovered in the Sunniland Formation by Humble Oil Company on 1 Nov 1943.
C. Stratigraphy
1. Miami Limestone (Qml) - predominantly oolitic limestone, contains some quartz particulary in the northern areas,
2. Key Largo (Qk) - coralline limestone from Soldier Hey to Bahia Honda
3. Anastasia Formation (Qa) - coquina, sand, sandy limestone and shelly marl
4. Fort Thompson Formation (Qft) - marine limestones vary from from shell beds to marls and mudstones, also freshwater limestones
5. Caloosahatchee Formation (Pc) - variable
6. Tamiami Formation (Pt)- marl,quartz sand, shell and rock fragments, limestone
7. Qmt - several marine and estuarine deposits

IV. SOILS
A. Introduction
1. Definitions
a. soil - (pedalogic definition) a natural product formed from weathered rock by the action of climate and organisms (Thomson and Troeh 1973)
b. soil - (edaphic definition) a mixture of mineral and organic matter capable of supporting plant life .
2. Soil Structure
a. Organic horizons (at least 20% - 30% organic matter)
i. O horizon - layer formed above mineral horizon, dominated by organic material
b. Mineral Horizons (less than 12% - 18% organic matter)
i. A horizon - layers of organic matter accumulation at or near the soil surface, eluvial
ii. B horizon - generally below an A horizon, zone of illuvial concentration of silicate clay, iron, aluminum, or humus
iii. C horizon - mineral horizon, excluding bedrock below root zone, rock or sediments
c. Parent Material
3. Soil Formation (Jenny 1941)
S = f (cl, o, r, p, t) or S=f(tropc)
where s= soil
cl = climate
o = organisms
r = topography
p = parent material
t = time
4. Soil Properties - texture, bulk density, pH, CEC, base saturation, chemistry
B. Florida Soils (USDA system - heirarchical like botanical nomenclature)
1. Four types in southern Florida
a. Spodosols (spodic)
b. Histosols (histology)
c. Entisols (recent)
d. Alfisols (pedalf)
e. Miscellaneous coastal soils
2. Palm Beach
a. Basinger Fine Sand (2.9%) - Psammaquent, nearly level, poorly drained, sandy soil in broad, low sloughs and depressions. Water table within 10" of the surface for 2-6 months of the year, permeability high, om content low
b. Boca Fine Sand (2.8%) - Ochraqualf, nearly level, poorly drained soil that has a loamy subsoilthat is underlain by fractured limestone, water table within 10' of the surface 2-4 months of the year
c. Immokalee Fine Sand (2.8%) - Haploquod, nearly level, poorly drained, deep, sandy soil that has a dark colored layer below a depth of 30" that is weakly cemented with om, water table within 10' of the surface 2-4 months of the year
d. Lauderhill Muck (2.6%) - Medisaprist, nearly level, poorly drained, organic soil that rests on limestone at a depth of 20-36", found in braod, freshwater marshes
e. Udorthents - nearly level to steep, excessively drained, unconsolidated geologic material, excavations