Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Ecological research can augment restoration practice in urban areas degraded by invasive species—examples from Chicago Wilderness

  • Published:
Urban Ecosystems Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Urban biodiversity conservation needs a firm scientific foundation, one that draws upon active and regionally calibrated research programs. Until recently this foundation has not existed. In this paper we examine the way in which the emerging discipline of restoration ecology in an urban context can learn from the experiences of ongoing restoration projects and in turn how novel insights from research of urban soils can help these projects define and reach their goals. Limitations on collaboration between academic researchers and practitioners continues be problematic. We discuss a model whereby this impediment may be removed. A case study of Rhamnus cathartica, an invader of Midwestern woodlands which modifies some important soil ecosystem properties will be used to illustrate the potential for engagement between research and practice.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alberti M, Marzluff J-M, Shulenberger E, Bradley G, Ryan C, Zumbrunnen C (2003) Integrating humans into ecology: opportunities and challenges for studying urban ecosystems. Bioscience 53(12):1169–1179

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Archibold O-W, Brooks D, Delanoy L (1997) An investigation of the invasive shrub European Buckthorn, Rhamnus cathartica L., near Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Can Field Nat 111:617–621

  • Averett J-M, Klips R-A, Nave L-E, Frey S-D, Curtis P-S (2004) Effects of soil carbon amendment on nitrogen availability and plant growth in an experimental tallgrass prairie restoration. Restor Ecol 12(4):568–574

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boudreau D, Willson G (1992) Buckthorn research and control at Pipestone National Monument (Minnesota). Restor Manage Notes 10(1):94–95

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowles M-L, Jones M-D, McBride J-L (2003) Twenty-year changes in burned and unburned sand prairie remnants in northwestern Illinois and implications for management. Am Midl Nat 149(1):35–45

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown VK, Gange AC (1992) Secondary plant succession-how is it modified by insect herbivory. Vegetatio 101(1):3–13

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brussaard L, Behan-Pelletier VM, Bignell DE, Brown VK, Didden W, Folgarait P, Fragoso C, Freckman DW, Gupta V, Hattori T, Hawksworth DL, Klopatek C, Lavelle P, Malloch DW, Rusek J, Soderstrom B, Tiedje JM, Virginia RA (1997) Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in soil. Ambio 26(8):563–570

    Google Scholar 

  • Cabin RJ (2007) Science-driven restoration: A square grid on a round earth? Restor Ecol 15(1):1–7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cadenasso ML, Pickett STA, Grove JM (2006) Dimensions of ecosystem complexity: Heterogeneity, connectivity, and history. Ecol Complex 3(1):1–12

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cherett JM (1989) Ecological concepts, the contribution of ecology to an understanding of the natural world. 29th BES Symposium, Blackwell, Oxford, 385 pp

  • Choi Y-D (2004) Theories for ecological restoration in changing environment: toward ‘futuristic’ restoration. Ecol Res 19:75–81

    Google Scholar 

  • Chronopoulos G, Christodoulakis D (2000) Analysis of the adventive flora of a Greek city: The example of Patras. Bot Helv 110(2):171–189

    Google Scholar 

  • Clark D-L, Wilson, M-V (2001) Fire, mowing, and hand-removal of woody species in restoring a native wetland prairie in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. Wetlands 21:135–144

    Google Scholar 

  • Clements FE (1936) Nature and structure of the climax. J Ecol 24:252–284

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Collinge SK (1996) Ecological consequences of habitat fragmentation: Implications for landscape architecture and planning. Landsc Urban Plan 36(1):59–77

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Council CRB (1999) Biodiversity Recovery Plan

  • Cowles HC (1899) The ecological relations of the vegetation on the sand dunes of lake Michigan. Part I.—Geographical relations of the dune floras. Bot Gaz 27(2):95–117

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Crane P, Kinzig A (2005) Nature in the metropolis. Science 308(5726):1225

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cronon W (1992) Nature’s Metropolis: Chicago and the Great West. Norton, New York

  • Crooks J-A (2002) Characterizing ecosystem-level consequences of biological invasions: the role of ecosystem engineers. Oikos 97(2):153–166

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • D’Antonio C, Meyerson L-A (2002) Exotic plant species as problems and solutions in ecological restoration: a synthesis. Restor Ecol 10(4):703–713

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis MA, Grime JP, Thompson K (2000) Fluctuating resources in plant communities: a general theory of invasibility. J Ecol 88(3):528–534

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edwards B (1998) Green unseen (Architecture and ecology). Archit Rev 203(1216):18–18

    Google Scholar 

  • Ehrenfeld J-G (1997) Invasion of deciduous forest preserves in the New York metropolitan region by Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii DC.). J Torrey Bot Soc 124(2):210–215

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ehrenfeld J-G (2003) Effects of exotic plant invasions on soil nutrient cycling processes. Ecosystems 6(6):503–523

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ehrenfeld J-G, Kourtev P, Huang W (2001) Changes in soil functions following invasions of exotic understory plants in deciduous forests. Ecol Appl 11(5):1287–1300

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Forbes SA (1887) The lake as a microcosm. Bull Peoria Sci Assoc III:77–87

    Google Scholar 

  • Fralish JS, Anderson RC, Ebinger JE, Szafoni R (1994) Proceedings North American Conference on Savannas and Barrens. http://www.epa.gov/ecopage/upland/oak/oak94/Proceedings/index.html. Cited August, 2007

  • Giardina CP, Litton CM, Thaxton JM, Cordell S, Hadway LJ, Sandquist DR (2007) Science driven restoration: a candle in a demon haunted world—Response to Cabin (2007). Restor Ecol 15(2):171–176

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gleason, HA (1926) The individualistic concept of the plant association. Bull Torrey Bot Club 53:7–26

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Godwin H (1936) Studies in the ecology of Wicken Fen: III. The establishment and development of fen scrub (Carr). J Ecol 24(1):82–116

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Godwin H (1943) Rhamnus cathartica L. J Ecol 31(1):69–76

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goode DA (1989) Urban nature conservation in Britain. J Appl Ecol 26(3):859–873

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gordon D-R (1998) Effects of invasive, non-indigenous plant species on ecosystem processes: lessons from Florida. Ecol Appl 8(4):975–989

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gourley LC, Howell E (1984) Factors in buckthorn invasion documented; control measure checked (Wisconsin). Restor Manage Notes 2(2):87

    Google Scholar 

  • Greenberg J (2002) A natural history of the Chicago region. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL

  • Grimm N-B, Redman C-L (2004) Approaches to the study of urban ecosystems: the case of Central Arizona-Phoenix. Urban Ecosyst 7(3):199–213

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harrington RA, Brown BJ, Reich PB (1989) Ecophysiology of exotic and native shrubs in Southern Wisconsin USA I. Relationship of leaf characteristics resource availability and phenology to seasonal patterns of carbon gain. Oecologia (Berlin) 80(3):356–367

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harrison C, Davies G (2002) Conserving biodiversity that matters: practitioners’ perspectives on brownfield development and urban nature conservation in London. J Environ Manag 65(1):95–108

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heneghan L, Clay C, Brundage C (2002) Observations on the initial decomposition rates and faunal colonization of native and exotic plant species in a urban forest fragment. Ecological Restoration 20(2):108–111

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heneghan L, Rauschenberg C, Fatemi F, Workman M (2004) The impact of an Invasive Shrub (Rhamnus cathartica L.) on some ecosystem properties in urban woodland in Chicago, Illinois. Ecological Restoration 22(4):275–280

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heneghan L, Steffen J, Fagen K (2006) Interactions of an introduced shrub and introduced earthworms in an Illinois urban woodland: Impact on leaf litter decomposition. Pedobiologia 50:543-551

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huenneke LF (1995) Involving academic scientists in conservation research—perspectives of a plant ecologist. Ecol Appl 5(1):209–214

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaye JP, Groffman PM, Grimm NB, Baker LA, Pouyat RV (2006) A distinct urban biogeochemistry? Trends Ecol Evol 21(4):192–199

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kent M, Stevens RA, Zhang L (1999) Urban plant ecology patterns and processes: a case study of the flora of the City of Plymouth, Devon, U.K. J Biogeogr 26(6):1281–1298

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Knight K-S, Reich P-B (2005) Opposite relationships between invasibility and native species richness at patch versus landscape scales. Oikos 109(1):81–88

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kourtev P-S, Ehrenfeld J-G, Haggblom M (2002) Exotic plant species alter the microbial community structure and function in the soil. Ecology (Washington DC) 83(11):3152–3166

    Google Scholar 

  • Lefebvre H (2003) The urban revolution. University of Minnesota Press,Minnesota

  • Lindeman, RL (1942) The trophic-dynamic aspect of ecology. Ecology 23:399–418

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maron JL, Jeffries RL (2001) Restoring enriched grasslands: Effects of mowing on species richness, productivity, and nitrogen retention. Ecol Appl 11(4):1088–1100

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matlack GR (1997) Four centuries of forest clearance and regeneration in the hinterland of a large city. J Biogeogr 24(3):281–295

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McDonnell MJ, Pickett STA (1990) Ecosystem structure and function along urban–rural gradients: an unexploited opportunity for ecology. Ecology 71(4):1232–1237

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Midgely M (2001) Science and poetry. Routledge, Evanston, IL

  • Miller JR, Hobbs RJ (2002) Conservation where people live and work. Conserv Biol 16(2):330–337

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Niemela J (1999) Ecology and urban planning. Biodivers Conserv 8(1):119–131

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Odum EP (1969) The strategy of ecosystem development. Science 164:262–270

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ong BL (2003) Green plot ratio: an ecological measure for architecture and urban planning. Landsc Urban Plan 63(4):197–211

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Packard S (1988) Just a few oddball species: restoration and rediscovery of the tallgrass savanna. Restor Manage Notes 6:13–24

    Google Scholar 

  • Packard S (1993) Restoring oak ecosystems. Restor Manage Notes 11:5–16

    Google Scholar 

  • Packard S, Mutel CF (1997) The tallgrass restoration handbook. Island Press, Washington, DC

  • Palmer M, Bernhardt E, Chornesky E, Collins S, Dobson A, Duke C, Gold B, Jacobson R, Kingsland S, Kranz R, Mappin M, Martinez ML, Micheli F, Morse J, Pace M, Pascual M, Palumbi S, Reichman OJ, Simons A, Townsend A, Turner M (2004) ECOLOGY: Ecology for a crowded planet. Science 304(5675):1251–1252

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Park RE (1936) Human ecology. Am J Sociol 42(1):1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pickett STA, Cadenasso ML, Grove JM, Nilon CH, Pouyat RV, Zipperer WC, Costanza R (2001) Urban ecological systems: linking terrestrial ecological, physical, and socioeconomic components of metropolitan areas. Ann Rev Ecolog Syst 32:127–157

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quinn JA (1940) Human ecology and interactional ecology. Am Sociol Rev 5(5):713–722

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reever-Morghan KJ, Seastedt TR (1999) Effects of soil nitrogen reduction on nonnative plants in restored grasslands. Restor Ecol 7(1):51–55

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rejmanek M (1996) A theory of seed plant invasiveness: the first sketch. Biol Conserv 78(1–2):171–181

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rice S-K, Westerman B, Federici R (2004) Impacts of the exotic, nitrogen-fixing black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) on nitrogen-cycling in a pine-oak ecosystem. Plant Ecol 174(1):97–107

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rudd H, Vala J, Schaefer V (2002) Importance of backyard habitat in a comprehensive biodiversity conservation strategy: a connectivity analysis of urban green spaces. Restor Ecol 10:368–375

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stearns F, Holland K (1993) 1993 Midwest Oak Savanna Conferences. http://www.epa.gov/ecopage/upland/oak/oak93/index.html. Cited August 2007

  • Stevens WK (1996) Miracle under the oaks: The revival of nature in America. Pocket, New York

  • Suding KN, Gross KL, Houseman GR (2004) Alternative states and positive feedbacks in restoration ecology. Trends Ecol Evol 19(1):46–53

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tarvainen O, Markkola AM, Strommer R (2003) Diversity of macrofungi and plants in Scots pine forests along an urban pollution gradient. Basic Appl Ecol 4(6):547–556

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tilman D (1987) Secondary succession and the pattern of plant dominance along experimental nitrogen gradients. Ecol Monogr 57(3):189–214

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Todd J, Brown EJG, Wells E (2003) Ecological design applied. Ecol Eng 20(5):421–440

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Umek L, Heneghan L (2007) Chicago wilderness invasive species roundtable discussion: Pragmatic solutions to common problems in the Chicago Wilderness region. http://gis.depaul.edu/envirsci/LJH/CWInvasivesRoundtableWebpage/CWInvasiveShrubRoundtable.pdf. Cited July 2007

  • Underwood AJ (1995) Ecological research and (and Research into) environmental management. Ecol Appl 5(1):232–247

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • UNPF (2007) State of world population 2007: unleashing the potential of urban growth. http://www.unfpa.org/swp/2007/presskit/pdf/sowp2007_eng.pdf. Cited August 2007

  • Van der Ryn S, Cowan S (1995) Ecological design. Island Press, New York

  • Van-der-Putten WH, Mortimer SR, Hedlund K, Van-Dijk C, Brown VK, Leps J, Rodriguez-Barrueco C, Roy J, Diaz-Len TA, Gormsen D, Korthals GW, Lavorel S, Santa-Regina I, Smilauer P (2000) Plant species diversity as a driver of early succession in abandoned fields: a multi-site approach. Oecologia (Berlin) 124(1):91–99

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wackernagel M, Yount JD (1998) The ecological footprint: an indicator of progress toward regional sustainability. Environ Monit Assess 51(1–2):511–529

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang Y, Moskovits D-K (2001) Tracking fragmentation of natural communities and changes in land cover: applications of landsat data for conservation in an urban landscape (Chicago Wilderness). Conserv Biol 15(4):835–843

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wardle DA, Bardgett RD, Klironomos JN, Setala H, van der Putten WH, Wall DH (2004) Ecological linkages between aboveground and belowground biota. Science 304(5677):1629–1633

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Warner RE (1994) Agricultural land use and grassland habitat in Illinois: future shock for Midwestern birds? Conserv Biol 8(1):147–156

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wirth L (1945) Human ecology. Bull Torrey Bot Club 50(6):483

    Google Scholar 

  • Worster D (1994) Nature’s economy: a history of ecological ideas, 2nd edn. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK

    Google Scholar 

  • Zavaleta E-S, Hobbs R-J, Mooney H-A (2001) Viewing invasive species removal in a whole-ecosystem context. Trends Ecol Evol 16(8):454–459

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zipperer WC, Wu J, Pouyat RV, Pickett STA (2000) The application of ecological principles to urban and urbanizing landscapes. Ecol Appl 10(3):685

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work was funded in part by grant from USDA Forest Service to DePaul University. We thank them for this support. The project would not have been possible without the cooperation and support of James Steffen, Chicago Botanic Garden, Glencoe, Illinois, Wayne Vanderploeg, Department of Resource Management District of Cook County Forest Preserve, Dr Christopher Dunn, formerly of the Morton Arboretum, and Steve Bartram, of Lake Forest Openlands Association. Colleagues in the Environmental Science Program, especially Drs Thomas Murphy and James Montgomery are thanked for their lively interest and collegial support of this work. Help in the field and laboratory from, Evan Barker, Melissa Barnhart, Frank Cristelli, Kristen Fagen, Phoi Hua, Michelle Hargreaves, Mitchell Melton, Jamie Sandifer, and Daniel Strain was appreciated. We thank Dr Christ Iatropulos (Kieh company) for assistance with measuring cotton strip tensile strength. The figure of the sites was provided by John Foster, DePaul University. Undergraduate student grants from the Liberal Arts and Sciences program, and support from the Gutgsell Foundation were critical to completion of this project. Support from the National Park Service to review links between soils and restoration is gratefully acknowledged. Comments on an earlier version of this paper by two anonymous reviewers and by Mitchell Pavao-Zuckerman on a later version were very useful.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Liam Heneghan.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Heneghan, L., Umek, L., Bernau, B. et al. Ecological research can augment restoration practice in urban areas degraded by invasive species—examples from Chicago Wilderness. Urban Ecosyst 12, 63–77 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-008-0057-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-008-0057-8

Keywords

Navigation