Contrasting influences of inundation and land use on the rate of floodplain restoration

This study examined the assisted natural restoration of native vegetation in an Australian floodplain wetland where flows were reinstated and the river was reconnected to the floodplain, following cessation of agricultural cultivation. Extant vegetation was surveyed three times during an inundation event at plots with different land‐use histories. Restoration rate was more influenced by past land use than long‐term inundation frequency and success decreased with antecedent land‐use intensity. Prolonged land‐use history (>3 years cultivation) restricted restoration success. Sites with longer cultivation histories tended to have fewer aquatic species, more terrestrial species and exotic species. For example, amphibious responders with floating leaves were found only in reference plots and less frequently in farmed treatment plots. In this scenario, increased persistence of exotics and dryland species suggested alternative trajectories. Fields with a short land‐use history (1–3 years of clearing and cultivation) resembled undisturbed floodplain communities, consistent with a ‘field of dreams’ hypothesis. Although river–floodplain reconnections can restore wetlands, legacy effects of past land use may limit the pace and outcomes of restoration.Australian Postgraduate AwardAustralian Research Council. Grant Number: DE120102221ARC Centre of Excellence for Environmental Decisions Australian Research Council Linkage Project. Grant Number: LP088416

Plant profit maximisation improves predictions of European forest responses to drought

- Knowledge of how water stress impacts the carbon and water cycles is a key uncertainty in terrestrial biosphere models. - We tested a new profit maximisation model, where photosynthetic uptake of CO2 is optimally traded against plant hydraulic function, as an alternative to the empirical functions commonly used in models to regulate gas exchange during periods of water stress. We conducted a multi-site evaluation of this model at the ecosystem scale, before and during major droughts in Europe. Additionally, we asked whether the maximum hydraulic conductance in the soil-plant continuum

Factors Influencing Adults' Environmental Attitudes and Behaviors and the Role of Environmental Schools in Influencing their Communities

The present study revisits a subfield of environmental education: significant life experiences, which studies the influences that shape the development of environmental stewardship. In the present study, we examine the effect of various formative experiences on a group of adults and analyze the role of school, as a formative influence on the parents of the students. By employing factor analysis, we were able to differentiate between groups of variables influencing attitudes and those influencing behavior. Cluster analysis enabled us to differentiate between types of respondents in accordance to their responsiveness to influencing experiences. The results draw attention to (a) the different pathways by which environmental attitudes and behaviors are influenced; (b) the important role of the inner self (“personality”) in organizing and giving meaning to all other formative influences; and (c) the effectiveness of environmental schools in urban communities in Israel, in influencing the behavior of students’ parents