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  1. Article: Optimising restoration and rehabilitation using environmental and spatial drivers of plant assemblages

    Elliott, Brittany B. / Olds, Andrew D. / Henderson, Christopher J. / Rummell, Ashley J. / Gilby, Ben L.

    Landscape and urban planning. 2022 Oct., v. 226

    2022  

    Abstract: The extent, condition and connectedness of ecosystems has been significantly impacted by human activities globally, leading to a widespread appeal of and demand for ecological restoration. Maximising the ecological outcomes and cost effectiveness of ... ...

    Abstract The extent, condition and connectedness of ecosystems has been significantly impacted by human activities globally, leading to a widespread appeal of and demand for ecological restoration. Maximising the ecological outcomes and cost effectiveness of restoration requires that plans be optimised by indexing the distribution, abundance and condition of habitat-forming species, and that target ecosystem conditions be developed in concert with restoration site attributes. This type of quantitative approach for creating malleable ecological targets which are informed by local environmental conditions is, however, uncommon. In this study, we surveyed the composition and coverage of understorey plants, and the composition and size of trees in coastal dunes at five transects at each of 20 sites (for n = 100) on the Sunshine Coast, central eastern Australia, and use this information to prioritise restoration sites and create optimised planting regimes for degraded sites. Each of the identified indicator species (six understorey and four tree species) had unique preferred conditions and was affected by multiple environmental and spatial variables at varying spatial scales, with most species affected by urbanisation. Species distribution models (SDMs) were used to identify target/reference ecosystems and optimal planting mixes for potential restoration sites given the site’s environmental attributes. Our approach of integrating data on the distribution, abundance and condition of habitat-forming species into multiple SDMs can be used to optimise planting regimes at restoration sites and provides a framework for setting dynamic restoration targets across landscapes.
    Keywords cost effectiveness ; ecological restoration ; ecosystems ; geographical distribution ; humans ; indicator species ; landscapes ; quantitative analysis ; trees ; understory ; urbanization ; Queensland
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2022-10
    Publishing place Elsevier B.V.
    Document type Article
    ZDB-ID 742504-1
    ISSN 1872-6062 ; 0169-2046
    ISSN (online) 1872-6062
    ISSN 0169-2046
    DOI 10.1016/j.landurbplan.2022.104484
    Database NAL-Catalogue (AGRICOLA)

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  2. Article: Watching the Saltmarsh Grow: A High-Resolution Remote Sensing Approach to Quantify the Effects of Wetland Restoration

    Rummell, Ashley J. / Leon, Javier X. / Borland, Hayden P. / Elliott, Brittany B. / Gilby, Ben L. / Henderson, Christopher J. / Olds, Andrew D.

    Remote Sensing. 2022 Sept. 12, v. 14, no. 18

    2022  

    Abstract: Coastal wetlands are restored to regenerate lost ecosystem services. Accurate and frequent representations of the distribution and area of coastal wetland communities are critical for evaluating restoration success. Typically, such data are acquired ... ...

    Abstract Coastal wetlands are restored to regenerate lost ecosystem services. Accurate and frequent representations of the distribution and area of coastal wetland communities are critical for evaluating restoration success. Typically, such data are acquired through laborious, intensive and expensive field surveys or traditional remote sensing methods that can be erroneous. Recent advances in remote sensing techniques such as high-resolution sensors (<2 m resolution), object-based image analysis and shallow learning classifiers provide promising alternatives but have rarely been applied in a restoration context. We measured the changes to wetland communities at a 200 ha restoring coastal wetland in eastern Australia, using remotely sensed Worldview-2 imagery, object-based image analysis and random forest classification. Our approach used structural rasters (digital elevation and canopy height models) and a multi-temporal technique to distinguish between spectrally similar land cover. The accuracy of our land cover maps was high, with overall accuracies ranging between 91 and 95%, and this supported early detection of increases in the area of key ecosystems, including mixed she-oak and paperbark (10 ha), mangroves (0.91 ha) and saltmarsh (4.31 ha), over a 5-year monitoring period. Our approach provides coastal managers with an accurate and frequent method for quantifying early responses of coastal wetlands to restoration, which is essential for informing adaptive management in the regeneration of ecosystem services.
    Keywords adaptive management ; canopy height ; ecosystems ; image analysis ; land cover ; salt marshes ; wetland restoration ; Australia
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2022-0912
    Publishing place Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
    Document type Article
    ZDB-ID 2513863-7
    ISSN 2072-4292
    ISSN 2072-4292
    DOI 10.3390/rs14184559
    Database NAL-Catalogue (AGRICOLA)

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  3. Article: Seascape context matters more than habitat condition for fish assemblages in coastal ecosystems

    Goodridge Gaines, Lucy A. / Henderson, Christopher J. / Mosman, Jesse D. / Olds, Andrew D. / Borland, Hayden P. / Gilby, Ben L.

    Oikos. 2022 Aug., v. 2022, no. 8

    2022  

    Abstract: Ecosystems are increasingly degraded, fragmented and lost because of human activities globally. These impacts cause changes in the distribution of biodiversity and key ecological functions, modifications to food webs and reductions in ecosystem condition ...

    Abstract Ecosystems are increasingly degraded, fragmented and lost because of human activities globally. These impacts cause changes in the distribution of biodiversity and key ecological functions, modifications to food webs and reductions in ecosystem condition and seascape connectivity. Understanding whether, and how, the spatial context (i.e. extent, position) and condition (i.e. structure and condition of patches, including habitat forming species) of ecosystems coalesce to support their function as animal habitats is critical for effective and cost efficient coastal management. These potential combined, or interactive, effects of spatial context and habitat condition on fish assemblages are, however, rarely quantified. We sampled fish assemblages from six different ecosystems (mangrove, seagrass, saltmarsh, log snag, rocky outcrop and unvegetated sediment) across 13 estuaries in eastern Australia and quantified the relative importance of spatial context and habitat condition variables for fish assemblage composition. Spatial context variables were consistently more important than habitat condition in structuring fish abundance and diversity. Sites that were closer to smaller vegetated habitats (i.e. mangrove and seagrass) and key seascape features (i.e. estuary mouth and intertidal flats) typically supported diverse fish assemblages in high abundance. While the composition of fish assemblages was primarily linked to spatial context variables, habitat condition variables that index food availability were also important for fish in mangroves, seagrass and rocky outcrops. Our results show that fish abundance and diversity are intimately linked to seascape connectivity and heterogeneity, and have important implications for conservation planning and fisheries management decisions in coastal ecosystems. We highlight the importance of quantifying the influence of the combined effects of habitat condition and spatial context for biodiversity across multiple ecosystems, and expect the outcomes to lead to more efficient and effective management planning.
    Keywords biodiversity ; coastal zone management ; cost effectiveness ; estuaries ; fish ; food availability ; habitats ; humans ; littoral zone ; salt marshes ; seagrasses ; sediments ; Australia
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2022-08
    Publishing place Blackwell Publishing Ltd
    Document type Article
    Note JOURNAL ARTICLE
    ZDB-ID 207359-6
    ISSN 0030-1299
    ISSN 0030-1299
    DOI 10.1111/oik.09337
    Database NAL-Catalogue (AGRICOLA)

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  4. Article: Connectivity Shapes Functional Diversity and Maintains Complementarity in Surf Zones on Exposed Coasts

    Henderson, Christopher J. / Gilby, Ben L. / Olds, Andrew D. / Mosman, Jesse / Connolly, Rod M. / Hyndes, Glenn / Kelaher, Brendan / Maslo, Brooke / Williams, Alan / Schlacher, Thomas A.

    Estuaries and coasts. 2022 Sept., v. 45, no. 6

    2022  

    Abstract: Habitat complexity and connectivity can influence the number of species and their diversity across a landscape. For the surf zones of ocean-exposed beaches, globally one of the longest habitat interfaces, the assumed low structural complexity, and ... ...

    Abstract Habitat complexity and connectivity can influence the number of species and their diversity across a landscape. For the surf zones of ocean-exposed beaches, globally one of the longest habitat interfaces, the assumed low structural complexity, and apparent homogeneity, of the sandy seafloor habitats predicts low taxonomic and functional diversity. Here, we assessed how the configuration of the seascape and the context of different beach structure functional diversity and functional niche space of fish assemblages in surf zones. We expected that beaches that were well connected with highly productive and complex estuarine and reef habitats would support a greater level of functional diversity, and a greater degree of functional complementarity within different niches. We sampled surf zones at twenty-five beaches along 50 km of coastline in southeast Queensland, Australia. We calculated functional diversity and functional niche space using variation in the functional traits of fish assemblages. We found that increased proximity with nearby subtidal rocky reefs was the key feature of the coastline shaping functional diversity and functional niche space in surf zone fishes. These effects resulted in increased functional complementarity within a number of fish functional group niches when rocky reefs were nearby. We provide empirical evidence that habitat proximity can structure functional diversity and complementarity in the surf zones of ocean beaches, a system traditionally viewed as having low habitat heterogeneity. Our results highlight the focus management must take in conserving these highly connected ecosystems to avoid negative functional consequences.
    Keywords coasts ; estuaries ; fish ; functional diversity ; landscapes ; Queensland
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2022-09
    Size p. 1534-1544.
    Publishing place Springer US
    Document type Article
    ZDB-ID 2229170-2
    ISSN 1559-2731 ; 1559-2723
    ISSN (online) 1559-2731
    ISSN 1559-2723
    DOI 10.1007/s12237-022-01046-0
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  5. Article ; Online: Seafloor Terrain Shapes the Three-dimensional Nursery Value of Mangrove and Seagrass Habitats

    Borland, Hayden P. / Gilby, Ben L. / Henderson, Christopher J. / Connolly, Rod M. / Gorissen, Bob / Ortodossi, Nicholas L. / Rummell, Ashley J. / Nagelkerken, Ivan / Pittman, Simon J. / Sheaves, Marcus / Olds, Andrew D.

    Ecosystems. 2023 Mar., v. 26, no. 2 p.442-456

    2023  

    Abstract: Mangroves and seagrasses are important nurseries for many marine species, and this function is linked to the complexity and context of these habitats in coastal seascapes. It is also connected to bathymetric features that influence habitat availability, ... ...

    Abstract Mangroves and seagrasses are important nurseries for many marine species, and this function is linked to the complexity and context of these habitats in coastal seascapes. It is also connected to bathymetric features that influence habitat availability, and the accessibility of refuge habitats, but the significance of terrain variation for nursery function is unknown. To test whether seafloor terrain influences nursery function, we surveyed fish assemblages from mangrove and seagrass habitats in 29 estuaries in eastern Australia with unbaited underwater cameras and quantified the surrounding three-dimensional terrain with a set of complementary surface metrics (that is, depth, aspect, curvature, slope, roughness) applied to sonar-derived bathymetric maps. Terrain metrics explained variability in assemblages in both mangroves and seagrasses, with differing effects for the entire fish assemblage and nursery species composition, and between habitats. Higher depth, plan curvature (concavity or convexity) and roughness (backscatter) were negatively correlated with abundance and diversity in mangroves and positively linked to abundance and diversity in seagrass. Mangrove nursery species (6 species) were most abundant in forests adjacent to flats with concave holes, rough substrates and low-moderate depths, whereas seagrass nursery species (3 species) were most abundant in meadows adjacent to deep channels with soft mounds and ledges. These findings indicate that seafloor terrain influences nursery function and demonstrate contrasting effects of terrain variation in mangroves and seagrass. We suggest that incorporating three-dimensional terrain into coastal conservation and restoration plans could help to improve outcomes for fisheries management, but contrasting strategies might be needed for different nursery habitats.
    Keywords fish ; habitats ; landscapes ; roughness ; seagrasses ; species diversity ; Australia
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2023-03
    Size p. 442-456.
    Publishing place Springer US
    Document type Article ; Online
    ZDB-ID 1428921-0
    ISSN 1435-0629 ; 1432-9840
    ISSN (online) 1435-0629
    ISSN 1432-9840
    DOI 10.1007/s10021-022-00767-4
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  6. Article: Identifying restoration hotspots that deliver multiple ecological benefits

    Gilby, Ben L / Duncan, Cassandra K / Henderson, Christopher J / Olds, Andrew D / Ortodossi, Nicholas L / Schlacher, Thomas A

    Restoration ecology. 2020 Jan., v. 28, no. 1

    2020  

    Abstract: Ecological restoration principally seeks to restore lost or degraded ecosystems. Restoration can, however, also deliver a suite of wider ecological, social, and economic benefits. To optimize performance it is, therefore, important to plan the design and ...

    Abstract Ecological restoration principally seeks to restore lost or degraded ecosystems. Restoration can, however, also deliver a suite of wider ecological, social, and economic benefits. To optimize performance it is, therefore, important to plan the design and placement of restoration initiatives with a view to maximizing joint effects on ecosystems, animal populations, ecological functions, and ecosystem services. We measured the effects of multiple (13) restored oyster reefs on a suite of restoration benefits (oyster settlement and growth, fish diversity and abundance, the ecological functions of scavenging and predation) in the Noosa River estuary, Australia, and used distribution models to identify potential restoration sites with the greatest overall benefits. Oysters recruited to reefs, and reefs enhanced the diversity and abundance of fishes and had higher rates of ecological functions than control sites. However, the growth of oyster reefs was most correlated with the proximity of restoration sites to urbanized shorelines and the estuary mouth, and the area of mangroves around the site. By contrast, fish diversity and abundance, and the rates of ecological functions, were typically negatively correlated with the proximity of reefs to both mangroves and seagrasses. This complex spatial mosaic resulted in distinct areas predicted to achieve all restoration benefits that were significantly smaller than the total area that could be restored. Applying a systematic and defensible method to identify potential restoration sites that maximize multiple benefits while lowering costs is a sensible social, economic, and ecological strategy.
    Keywords biodiversity ; ecological function ; ecological restoration ; ecosystem services ; ecosystems ; estuaries ; financial economics ; fish ; models ; oysters ; predation ; reefs ; rivers ; seagrasses ; shorelines ; urbanization ; Australia
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2020-01
    Size p. 222-232.
    Publishing place Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
    Document type Article
    Note JOURNAL ARTICLE
    ZDB-ID 914746-9
    ISSN 1526-100X ; 1061-2971
    ISSN (online) 1526-100X
    ISSN 1061-2971
    DOI 10.1111/rec.13046
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  7. Article ; Online: Disturbance type determines how connectivity shapes ecosystem resilience.

    Pearson, Ryan M / Schlacher, Thomas A / Jinks, Kristin I / Olds, Andrew D / Brown, Christopher J / Connolly, Rod M

    Scientific reports

    2021  Volume 11, Issue 1, Page(s) 1188

    Abstract: Connectivity is fundamentally important for shaping the resilience of complex human and natural networks when systems are disturbed. Ecosystem resilience is, in part, shaped by the spatial arrangement of habitats, the permeability and fluxes between them, ...

    Abstract Connectivity is fundamentally important for shaping the resilience of complex human and natural networks when systems are disturbed. Ecosystem resilience is, in part, shaped by the spatial arrangement of habitats, the permeability and fluxes between them, the stabilising functions performed by organisms, their dispersal traits, and the interactions between functions and stressor types. Controlled investigations of the relationships between these phenomena under multiple stressors are sparse, possibly due to logistic and ethical difficulties associated with applying and controlling stressors at landscape scales. Here we show that grazing performance, a key ecosystem function, is linked to connectivity by manipulating the spatial configuration of habitats in microcosms impacted by multiple stressors. Greater connectivity enhanced ecosystem function and reduced variability in grazing performance in unperturbed systems. Improved functional performance was observed in better connected systems stressed by harvesting pressure and temperature rise, but this effect was notably reversed by the spread of disease. Connectivity has complex effects on ecological functions and resilience, and the nuances should be recognised more fully in ecosystem conservation.
    Language English
    Publishing date 2021-01-13
    Publishing country England
    Document type Journal Article ; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
    ZDB-ID 2615211-3
    ISSN 2045-2322 ; 2045-2322
    ISSN (online) 2045-2322
    ISSN 2045-2322
    DOI 10.1038/s41598-021-80987-1
    Database MEDical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System OnLINE

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  8. Article: Applying systematic conservation planning to improve the allocation of restoration actions at multiple spatial scales

    Gilby, Ben L. / Olds, Andrew D. / Brown, Christopher J. / Connolly, Rod M. / Henderson, Christopher J. / Maxwell, Paul S. / Schlacher, Thomas A.

    Restoration ecology. 2021 July, v. 29, no. 5

    2021  

    Abstract: Ecological restoration is increasingly being upscaled to larger spatial scales of tens to hundreds of kilometers. Yet the complex logistics and high costs of ecological restoration mean that actions must be placed strategically at local scales of tens of ...

    Abstract Ecological restoration is increasingly being upscaled to larger spatial scales of tens to hundreds of kilometers. Yet the complex logistics and high costs of ecological restoration mean that actions must be placed strategically at local scales of tens of meters to maximize ecological benefits and reduce socioeconomic costs. Despite the purported use of systematic planning tools for allocating restoration effort, the uptake and implementation of data‐driven restoration planning and ecological goal setting remains poor in many restoration programs. Here we demonstrate how the sequential workflows of systematic conservation planning can be translated to restoration at two spatial scales to enhance estuarine fisheries in eastern Australia. We select estuaries where restoration is feasible and recommended based on quantitative regional ecological goals (i.e. regional‐scale prioritization), and then identify potential restoration sites at smaller spatial scales within estuaries based on the principles of spatial ecology to ensure that the success and benefits of restoration are maximized (i.e. local‐scale prioritization). At the regional scale, we identified four levels of restoration priorities (very high, high, intermediate, and low) using quantitative ecological goals and the current ecological understanding of each system. At the local scale, we used spatially explicit Bayesian belief networks to identify sites that maximize restoration outcomes based on the environmental niche of habitat‐forming species and the spatial configuration of habitats that maximizes their use by fish. We show that using systematic frameworks can become an essential tool to optimize restoration investments at multiple scales as efforts upscale globally.
    Keywords Bayesian theory ; ecological restoration ; estuaries ; fish ; prioritization ; Australia
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2021-07
    Publishing place Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
    Document type Article
    Note JOURNAL ARTICLE
    ZDB-ID 914746-9
    ISSN 1526-100X ; 1061-2971
    ISSN (online) 1526-100X
    ISSN 1061-2971
    DOI 10.1111/rec.13403
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  9. Article: The influence of seafloor terrain on fish and fisheries: A global synthesis

    Borland, Hayden P. / Gilby, Ben L. / Henderson, Christopher J. / Leon, Javier X. / Schlacher, Thomas A. / Connolly, Rod M. / Pittman, Simon J. / Sheaves, Marcus / Olds, Andrew D.

    Fish and fisheries. 2021 July, v. 22, no. 4

    2021  

    Abstract: The structure of seafloor terrain affects the distribution and diversity of animals in all seascapes. Effects of terrain on fish assemblages have been reported from most ecosystems, but it is unclear whether bathymetric effects vary among seascapes or ... ...

    Abstract The structure of seafloor terrain affects the distribution and diversity of animals in all seascapes. Effects of terrain on fish assemblages have been reported from most ecosystems, but it is unclear whether bathymetric effects vary among seascapes or change in response to seafloor modification by humans. We reviewed the global literature linking seafloor terrain to fish species and assemblages (96 studies) and determined that relief (e.g. depth), complexity (e.g. roughness), feature classes (e.g. substrate types) and morphology (e.g. curvature), have widespread effects on fish assemblages. Research on the ecological consequences of terrain have focused on coral reefs, rocky reefs, continental shelves and the deep sea (n ≥ 20 studies), but are rarely tested in estuaries (n = 7). Fish associate with a variety of terrain attributes, and assemblages change with variation in the depth and aspect of bathymetric features in reef and shelf seascapes, and in the deep sea. Fish from different seascapes also respond to distinct metrics, with fluctuations in slope of slope (coral reefs), rugosity (rocky reefs) and slope (continental shelves, deep sea) each linked to changes in assemblage composition. Terrain simplification from coastal urbanization (e.g. dredging) and resource extraction (e.g. trawling) can reduce fish diversity and abundance, but assemblages can also recover inside effective marine reserves. The consequences of these terrain changes for fish and fisheries are, however, rarely measured in most seascapes. The key challenge now is to examine how terrain modification and conservation combine to alter fish distributions and fisheries productivity across diverse coastal seascapes.
    Keywords corals ; fish ; landscapes ; roughness ; urbanization
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2021-07
    Size p. 707-734.
    Publishing place John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
    Document type Article
    Note JOURNAL ARTICLE
    ZDB-ID 2024569-5
    ISSN 1467-2979 ; 1467-2960
    ISSN (online) 1467-2979
    ISSN 1467-2960
    DOI 10.1111/faf.12546
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  10. Article: Human modifications to estuaries correlate with the morphology and functional roles of coastal fish

    Osborne, Felicity E. / Olds, Andrew D. / Schlacher, Thomas A. / Henderson, Christopher J. / Martin, Tyson S.H. / Connolly, Rod M. / Maxwell, Paul S. / Gilby, Ben L.

    Marine environmental research. 2021 Aug., v. 170

    2021  

    Abstract: Animals can respond to human impacts by favouring different morphological traits or by exploiting different food resources. We quantified the morphology and diet of four functionally different fish species (n = 543 fish) from 13 estuaries with varying ... ...

    Abstract Animals can respond to human impacts by favouring different morphological traits or by exploiting different food resources. We quantified the morphology and diet of four functionally different fish species (n = 543 fish) from 13 estuaries with varying degrees of human modification in Queensland, Australia. We found differences in the responses of trophic groups to the environmental conditions of estuaries; principally the extent of seagrass in the estuary, and the amount of shoreline and catchment urbanisation. Here, seagrass and urbanisation extent correlated with the diet and morphology of zooplanktivores and detritivores; thereby indicating that human modifications may modify these species functional roles. Conversely, environmental variables did not correlate with the diet or morphology of zoobenthivores or piscivores thereby indicating that human modifications may have less an effect on these species functional roles. Our findings demonstrate that anthropogenic impacts to coastal ecosystems might extend from the traditionally measured metrics of abundance and diversity.
    Keywords detritivores ; diet ; estuaries ; fish ; humans ; piscivores ; research ; seagrasses ; shorelines ; urbanization ; watersheds ; Queensland
    Language English
    Dates of publication 2021-08
    Publishing place Elsevier Ltd
    Document type Article
    ZDB-ID 1502505-6
    ISSN 1879-0291 ; 0141-1136
    ISSN (online) 1879-0291
    ISSN 0141-1136
    DOI 10.1016/j.marenvres.2021.105443
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