Restoration rocks: integrating abiotic and biotic habitat restoration to conserve threatened species and reduce fire fuel load

With rapid urban expansion, biodiversity conservation and human asset protection often require different regimes for managing wildfire risk. We conducted a controlled, replicated experiment to optimise habitat restoration for the threatened Australian pink-tailed worm-lizard, Aprasia parapulchella w...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biodiversity and conservation 2016-07, Vol.25 (8), p.1529-1542
Main Authors: McDougall, Alice, Richard N. C. Milner, Don A. Driscoll, Annabel L. Smith
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
assets
Biodiversity
Biological diversity conservation
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Climate Change/Climate Change Impacts
Conservation biology
Conservation Biology/Ecology
Ecological restoration
Ecology
Environmental restoration
Environmental risk
Forest & brush fires
Formicidae
fuel loading
glyphosate
Grasses
habitat conservation
Habitats
Herbicides
humans
indigenous species
Introduced species
invasive species
Lacertilia
land restoration
Life Sciences
Lizards
Original Paper
pesticide application
Poa
Protection and preservation
Revegetation
risk
Rocks
Themeda triandra
Threatened species
Urban areas
Urban sprawl
urbanization
Wildfires
Wildlife conservation
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:With rapid urban expansion, biodiversity conservation and human asset protection often require different regimes for managing wildfire risk. We conducted a controlled, replicated experiment to optimise habitat restoration for the threatened Australian pink-tailed worm-lizard, Aprasia parapulchella while reducing fire fuel load in a rapidly developing urban area. We used dense addition of natural rock (30 % cover) and native grass revegetation (Themeda triandra and Poa sieberiana) to restore critical habitat elements. Combinations of fire and herbicide (Glyphosate) were used to reduce fuel load and invasive exotic species. Rock restoration combined with herbicide application met the widest range of restoration goals: it reduced fire fuel load, increased ant occurrence (the primary prey of A. parapulchella) in the short-term and increased the growth and survival of native grasses. Lizards colonised the restored habitat within a year of treatment. Our study documents an innovative way by which conflicts between biodiversity conservation and human asset protection can be overcome.
ISSN:0960-3115
1572-9710
DOI:10.1007/s10531-016-1136-4