Opportunities for Integrating Ecological Restoration & Conservation Biology

Taken From

Society for Ecological Restoration International

BRIEFING NOTE May 2008

“The movement to conserve biodiversity is now at a critical junction. How do we maintain the viability and resilience of plant and animal species in the face of unprecedented habitat destruction and accelerated climate change? Outside certain plant and animal groups, ex-situ conservation currently has a limited role to play in preserving and safeguarding biodiversity on any significant scale (in terms of amount and coverage of materials available), and is often too narrowly focused on particular groups or even “charismatic” organisms, underplaying the role of different trophic levels, functional groups, and biotic-abiotic feedback interactions (particularly soils and hydrology which are often ignored completely).

At the same time, ecosystems have been fragmented or significantly degraded to the point where they are unable to support many organisms in-situ. It is now clear that conservation is no longer sufficient as protected areas continue to decline and habitat loss increases both within and outside these areas. Even many larger reserves do not have sufficient variation in habitat, elevation, or topography to allow for species adaptation to climate change. To properly address the current extinction crisis, we must not only preserve critical (core) habitat but repair and restore the ecological integrity of the surrounding and connected areas (Bennett & Mulongoy 2006), enabling threatened and endangered species to recover and indeed migrate more freely.

Along with climate change and invasive species, both conservation and restoration scientists and practitioners cite the destruction, degradation and fragmentation of habitat as key drivers in the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services (Turner et al. 2007). Even though ecological restoration has an important part to play in mitigating climate change and re-establishing native communities, this SER Briefing Note will address the complementary roles of ecological restoration and biological conservation, and their potential for integration within a unified ecosystem approach”.

More details in : www.ser.org