Habitat suitability and herbivores determine reintroduction success of an endangered legume.

ABSTRACT: Reintroductions of rare plants require detailed knowledge of habitat requirements, species interactions, and restoration techniques. Thus, incremental experimentation over many years may be required to develop adequate knowledge and techniques for successful reintroduction. To determine drivers of extinction in historical reintroductions of a federally endangered perennial (Astragalus bibullatus), we developed a reintroduction experiment to disentangle the relative importance of habitat quality, herbivores, and restoration technique on reintroduction success. In a factorial design, we manipulated access to vertebrate herbivores across different habitat types (mesic ecotone vs. xeric barren), and used founder populations comprised of more transplants and genetic sources than previous

SUBMITTER: Albrecht MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6520525 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature