TY - JOUR
T1 - Restoration, reconciliation, and reconnecting with nature nearby
AU - Miller, James R.
N1 - Funding Information:
Thanks to Adam Skibbe and Tracy Walker for their diligence on these research projects and for providing data. I am grateful to Susanne Hickey and Scott Moats (The Nature Conservancy) for all of their assistance in the Loess Hills, to Jon Duerr and Drew Ullberg (Kane County Forest Preserve District), to Tim Mesden (Kane County GIS Department), to Stephanie Snyder and Bob Haight (U.S. Forest Service) for their collaboration on the Kane County project, and especially to John Dwyer, whose support ultimately made that project possible. Comments from George Hess and two anonymous reviewers were quite helpful in revising this manuscript. Finally, thanks to Mike McKinney and Julie Lockwood for inviting me to participate in the symposium. This work was supported by the USDA Forest Service North Central Research Station and State Wildlife Grant T-1-R-4 from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
PY - 2006/1
Y1 - 2006/1
N2 - Biotic homogenization is in many ways a function of spatial and temporal scale. Another aspect of this phenomenon that perhaps receives somewhat less attention is related to "the scale of human experience", particularly in the way that people view homogenization. Here, I examine the relationship between scale and efforts to reverse the loss of native species using two case studies in the Midwestern U.S. Both of these are focused on the restoration of prairie, one in a rapidly urbanizing area and one in a rural context. At a large reserve in a rural area, it is possible to restore prairie at a scale that is sufficient to accommodate populations of grassland obligate birds. This is an unrealistic goal, however, for small reserves in the midst of suburban development and rapidly escalating land prices. Small reserves in this context may be suitable for taxa with smaller habitat requirements, but also have a vital role in reversing biotic homogenization by enabling people to experience nature directly. Not only does this improve their quality of life, but may also foster support for efforts to maintain biodiversity in more remote locations. Thus, the goals of conservation and ecological restoration at various points on the land-use gradient are somewhat different but complementary and inter-related. Conservation scientists have an obvious role in the restoration and management of large reserves, but they also have an important part to play in restoring and maintaining elements of biodiversity in cities and suburbs.
AB - Biotic homogenization is in many ways a function of spatial and temporal scale. Another aspect of this phenomenon that perhaps receives somewhat less attention is related to "the scale of human experience", particularly in the way that people view homogenization. Here, I examine the relationship between scale and efforts to reverse the loss of native species using two case studies in the Midwestern U.S. Both of these are focused on the restoration of prairie, one in a rapidly urbanizing area and one in a rural context. At a large reserve in a rural area, it is possible to restore prairie at a scale that is sufficient to accommodate populations of grassland obligate birds. This is an unrealistic goal, however, for small reserves in the midst of suburban development and rapidly escalating land prices. Small reserves in this context may be suitable for taxa with smaller habitat requirements, but also have a vital role in reversing biotic homogenization by enabling people to experience nature directly. Not only does this improve their quality of life, but may also foster support for efforts to maintain biodiversity in more remote locations. Thus, the goals of conservation and ecological restoration at various points on the land-use gradient are somewhat different but complementary and inter-related. Conservation scientists have an obvious role in the restoration and management of large reserves, but they also have an important part to play in restoring and maintaining elements of biodiversity in cities and suburbs.
KW - Biotic homogenization
KW - Grassland birds
KW - Habitat restoration
KW - Midwestern United States
KW - Prairie
KW - Reconciliation ecology
KW - Urbanization
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U2 - 10.1016/j.biocon.2005.07.021
DO - 10.1016/j.biocon.2005.07.021
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:28444489697
SN - 0006-3207
VL - 127
SP - 356
EP - 361
JO - Biological Conservation
JF - Biological Conservation
IS - 3
ER -