Ecological Restoration and Rewilding Strategies for Recovering Wildlife Populations in Degraded Natural Habitats
Keywords:
Ecological restoration, Rewilding Strategies, Wildlife Population Recovery, Degraded Habitats, Biodiversity Conservation, Habitat Connectivity, Species Reintroduction, Ecosystem Recovery, Trophic Cascades, Conservation EcologyAbstract
Restoration and rewilding have become two complementary approaches towards restoring depleted wildlife populations in disturbed habitats, which range from restoration of connectivity passively to reintroduction of missing species that used to control ecosystem processes. This review aims to present the effectiveness of these two approaches by using trophic rewilding synthesis, a case study of predator reintroduction, a global restoration meta-analysis, and experiments on connectivity. Restoration of trophic rewilding by means of reintroduction of species in order to restore ecological processes is a relatively new scientific concept, and a systematic review of conducted projects proves that trophic cascades can be recovered by means of reintroductions and ecological substitutes, though this science is still being researched and argued. One of the most thoroughly researched examples of rewilding is a case study of wolf reintroduction in Yellowstone National Park, where 15-year-old research showed recovery of woody browse species as well as other wildlife, though the ecosystem was not fully recovered even after this time period. From a wider perspective, meta-analysis carried out on a global scale for forest restoration shows that restoration has a great impact on enhancing biodiversity and vegetation structure as compared to degraded baseline conditions, with the ecological determinants of success being discernible in hundreds of landscapes under study. Also, scientific experiments conducted have revealed that restoring connectivity through the establishment of habitat corridors leads to cumulative gains in biodiversity over several decades without reaching any point where the gain becomes saturated, even up to 18 years. The conclusion is, therefore, that both active (reintroduction of species) and passive (restoration of connectivity) restorations can help in wildlife recovery, but both will take time.