Trade-offs between passive and trophic rewilding for biodiversity and ecosystem functioning
Trade-offs between passive and trophic rewilding for biodiversity and ecosystem functioning
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DOI：
10.1016/j.biocon.2023.110005
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发表时间：
2023-05
影响因子：
5.9
通讯作者：
Andrew J. Tanentzap;Georgia M Daykin;Thea G. Fennell;Ella Hearne;M. Wilkinson;P. Carey;B. Woodcock;M. Heard
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Andrew J. Tanentzap;Georgia M Daykin;Thea G. Fennell;Ella Hearne;M. Wilkinson;P. Carey;B. Woodcock;M. Heard
通过将大型动物重新引入自然环境以重建食物网相互作用和恢复生物多样性生态系统的营养野生化已经引起了广泛关注。尽管受到重视，但很少有实证研究评估了营养野化对促进生物多样性及其更广泛的生态效益的有效性。在这里，我们测试了在英格兰低地的前农田引入已经灭绝的大型食草动物的功能类似物是否对生物多样性和生态系统功能有额外的好处。我们预测，这些收益将超过通过被动再野化（即在农业活动停止后无辅助的栖息地演替）所取得的收益。通过9年的封闭实验，我们发现，与排除哺乳动物和草食动物的被动再野化样地相比，营养性再野化使木本植物多样性和总碳储量分别减少了73%和23%。然而，与土地继续进行农业生产（如与集约化畜牧生产相关的人工牧场）相比，营养化再野化可能会增加植物多样性和碳储量。与被动再野化相比，营养性再野化带来的植被变化使地栖节肢动物的多样性和生物量分别增加了21%和167%，部分原因是植被结构更加复杂。考虑到营养性和被动野化在生物多样性和生态系统功能方面的权衡，我们的研究强调，营养性野化需要与其他干预措施一起应用，以应对生物多样性丧失，同时应对气候变化。最终，营养性再野化作为一种恢复工具的效用将取决于社会所重视的保护结果。
Trophic rewilding that reintroduces large animals into landscapes to re-establish food web interactions and restore biodiverse ecosystems has gained widespread attention. Despite this attention, few empirical studies have assessed the effectiveness of trophic rewilding for promoting biodiversity and its wider ecological benefits. Here we tested if trophic rewilding that introduced functional analogues for extinct large herbivores into former farmland of lowland England delivered additional benefits to biodiversity and ecosystems functioning. We predicted that these benefits would exceed those achieved through passive rewilding, that is, unassisted habitat succession after the cessation of agricultural activity. Using a 9-year exclosure experiment, we found trophic rewilding reduced woody plant diversity and total carbon storage by 73% and 23%, respectively, compared to passive rewilding plots that excluded mammalian herbivores. However, trophic rewilding likely increased plant diversity and carbon storage compared to if land was left under continued agricultural production, e.g. artificial pastures associated with intensive livestock production. The vegetation changes accompanying trophic rewilding were further linked to a greater diversity and biomass of ground-dwelling arthropods by 21% and 167%, respectively, relative to passive rewilding, partly by creating more structurally complex vegetation. Given the trade-offs in biodiversity and ecosystem functions between trophic and passive rewilding, our study highlights that trophic rewilding will need to be applied alongside other interventions to tackle biodiversity loss while combatting climate change. Ultimately, the utility of trophic rewilding as a restoration tool will depend on the conservation outcomes valued by society.