Adaptive Management as a Tool in the Restoration of Grassland, Wetland, and Riparian Ecosystems within the Northern Great Plains

Abstract

Four individual restoration projects were conducted across grassland, wetland, and riparian ecosystems in the Northern Great Plains, with common themes of adaptive management and enhancing native plant species presence. The first project, a grassland restoration, assessed interseeding treatment combinations to evaluated influences on plant community composition. The second grassland restoration focused on revegetation efforts utilizing multiple seed mixes on a highly modified site and looked to understand influences on species establishment and invasive species control. A wetland restoration project was conducted employing varying levels of treatment intensities with goals of establishing native vegetation in an invasive dominated site. The last project evaluated the potential to use riparian grazing as a means of stream restoration with goals of increasing floodplain accessibility and stream stability. Given the essential ecosystem services each system provides, it is important to conduct restoration studies to understand mechanisms supporting the continued rehabilitation of degraded systems.