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Mutillod C, Buisson É, Mahy G, Jaunatre R, Bullock JM, Tatin L, Dutoit T. Ecological restoration and rewilding: two approaches with complementary goals? Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2024; 99:820-836. [PMID: 38346335 DOI: 10.1111/brv.13046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2022] [Revised: 12/12/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 05/09/2024]
Abstract
As we enter the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030) and address the urgent need to protect and restore ecosystems and their ecological functions at large scales, rewilding has been brought into the limelight. Interest in this discipline is thus increasing, with a large number of conceptual scientific papers published in recent years. Increasing enthusiasm has led to discussions and debates in the scientific community about the differences between ecological restoration and rewilding. The main goal of this review is to compare and clarify the position of each field. Our results show that despite some differences (e.g. top-down versus bottom-up and functional versus taxonomic approaches) and notably with distinct goals - recovery of a defined historically determined target ecosystem versus recovery of natural processes with often no target endpoint - ecological restoration and rewilding have a common scope: the recovery of ecosystems following anthropogenic degradation. The goals of ecological restoration and rewilding have expanded with the progress of each field. However, it is unclear whether there is a paradigm shift with ecological restoration moving towards rewilding or vice versa. We underline the complementarity in time and in space of ecological restoration and rewilding. To conclude, we argue that reconciliation of these two fields of nature conservation to ensure complementarity could create a synergy to achieve their common scope.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clémentine Mutillod
- Avignon Université, Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie IMBE, Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, site Agroparc BP 61207, Avignon Cedex 09, 84911, France
| | - Élise Buisson
- Avignon Université, Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie IMBE, Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, site Agroparc BP 61207, Avignon Cedex 09, 84911, France
| | - Gregory Mahy
- Avignon Université, Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie IMBE, Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, site Agroparc BP 61207, Avignon Cedex 09, 84911, France
- Université de Liège, Biodiversité et Paysage, 27 Avenue Maréchal Juin, Gembloux, 5030, Belgique
| | - Renaud Jaunatre
- Université Grenoble Alpes, INRAE, UR LESSEM, St-Martin-d'Hères, F-38402, France
| | - James M Bullock
- UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, OX10 8BB, Wallingford, UK
| | - Laurent Tatin
- Avignon Université, Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie IMBE, Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, site Agroparc BP 61207, Avignon Cedex 09, 84911, France
| | - Thierry Dutoit
- Avignon Université, Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie IMBE, Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, site Agroparc BP 61207, Avignon Cedex 09, 84911, France
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Svenning JC, Buitenwerf R, Le Roux E. Trophic rewilding as a restoration approach under emerging novel biosphere conditions. Curr Biol 2024; 34:R435-R451. [PMID: 38714176 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.02.044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/09/2024]
Abstract
Rewilding is a restoration approach that aims to promote self-regulating complex ecosystems by restoring non-human ecological processes while reducing human control and pressures. Rewilding is forward-looking in that it aims to enhance functionality for biodiversity, accepting and indeed promoting the dynamic nature of ecosystems, rather than fixating on static composition or structure. Rewilding is thus especially relevant in our epoch of increasingly novel biosphere conditions, driven by strong human-induced global change. Here, we explore this hypothesis in the context of trophic rewilding - the restoration of trophic complexity mediated by wild, large-bodied animals, known as 'megafauna'. This focus reflects the strong ecological impacts of large-bodied animals, their widespread loss during the last 50,000 years and their high diversity and ubiquity in the preceding 50 million years. Restoring abundant, diverse, wild-living megafauna is expected to promote vegetation heterogeneity, seed dispersal, nutrient cycling and biotic microhabitats. These are fundamental drivers of biodiversity and ecosystem function and are likely to gain importance for maintaining a biodiverse biosphere under increasingly novel ecological conditions. Non-native megafauna species may contribute to these effects as ecological surrogates of extinct species or by promoting ecological functionality within novel assemblages. Trophic rewilding has strong upscaling potential via population growth and expansion of wild fauna. It is likely to facilitate biotic adaptation to changing climatic conditions and resilience to ecosystem collapse, and to curb some negative impacts of globalization, notably the dominance of invasive alien plants. Finally, we discuss the complexities of realizing the biodiversity benefits that trophic rewilding offers under novel biosphere conditions in a heavily populated world.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jens-Christian Svenning
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 114, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
| | - Robert Buitenwerf
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 114, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Elizabeth Le Roux
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 114, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark; Department of Zoology and Entomology, Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0028, South Africa
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Trepel J, le Roux E, Abraham AJ, Buitenwerf R, Kamp J, Kristensen JA, Tietje M, Lundgren EJ, Svenning JC. Meta-analysis shows that wild large herbivores shape ecosystem properties and promote spatial heterogeneity. Nat Ecol Evol 2024; 8:705-716. [PMID: 38337048 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-024-02327-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
Megafauna (animals ≥45 kg) have probably shaped the Earth's terrestrial ecosystems for millions of years with pronounced impacts on biogeochemistry, vegetation, ecological communities and evolutionary processes. However, a quantitative global synthesis on the generality of megafauna effects on ecosystems is lacking. Here we conducted a meta-analysis of 297 studies and 5,990 individual observations across six continents to determine how wild herbivorous megafauna influence ecosystem structure, ecological processes and spatial heterogeneity, and whether these impacts depend on body size and environmental factors. Despite large variability in megafauna effects, we show that megafauna significantly alter soil nutrient availability, promote open vegetation structure and reduce the abundance of smaller animals. Other responses (14 out of 26), including, for example, soil carbon, were not significantly affected. Further, megafauna significantly increase ecosystem heterogeneity by affecting spatial heterogeneity in vegetation structure and the abundance and diversity of smaller animals. Given that spatial heterogeneity is considered an important driver of biodiversity across taxonomic groups and scales, these results support the hypothesis that megafauna may promote biodiversity at large scales. Megafauna declined precipitously in diversity and abundance since the late Pleistocene, and our results indicate that their restoration would substantially influence Earth's terrestrial ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonas Trepel
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark.
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark.
- Department of Conservation Biology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark.
| | - Elizabeth le Roux
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Andrew J Abraham
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- School of Informatics, Computing and Cyber Systems, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USA
| | - Robert Buitenwerf
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Johannes Kamp
- Department of Conservation Biology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Jeppe A Kristensen
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Environmental Change Institute, School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Melanie Tietje
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Erick J Lundgren
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark.
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark.
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark.
- School of Biology and Environmental Science, Faculty of Science, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
| | - Jens-Christian Svenning
- Center for Ecological Dynamics in a Novel Biosphere (ECONOVO), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
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Gordon CE, Greve M, Henley M, Bedetti A, Allin P, Svenning JC. Elephant rewilding affects landscape openness and fauna habitat across a 92-year period. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2023; 33:e2810. [PMID: 36694991 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2022] [Revised: 11/27/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Trophic rewilding aims to promote biodiverse self-sustaining ecosystems through the restoration of ecologically important taxa and the trophic interactions and cascades they propagate. How rewilding effects manifest across broad temporal scales will determine ecosystem states; however, our understanding of post-rewilding dynamics across longer time periods is limited. Here we show that the restoration of a megaherbivore, the African savannah elephant (Loxodonta africana), promotes landscape openness (i.e., various measures of vegetation composition/complexity) and modifies fauna habitat and that these effects continue to manifest up to 92 years after reintroduction. We conducted a space-for-time floristic survey and assessment of 17 habitat attributes (e.g., floristic diversity and cover, ground wood, tree hollows) across five comparable nature reserves in South African savannah, where elephants were reintroduced between 1927 and 2003, finding that elephant reintroduction time was positively correlated with landscape openness and some habitat attributes (e.g., large-sized tree hollows) but negatively associated with others (e.g., large-sized coarse woody debris). We then indexed elephant site occurrence between 2006 and 2018 using telemetry data and found positive associations between site occurrence and woody plant densities. Taken alongside the longer-term space-for-time survey, this suggests that elephants are attracted to dense vegetation in the short term and that this behavior increases landscape openness in the long term. Our results suggest that trophic rewilding with elephants helps promote a semi-open ecosystem structure of high importance for African biodiversity. More generally, our results suggest that megafauna restoration represents a promising tool to curb Earth's recent ecological losses and highlights the importance of considering long-term ecological responses when designing and managing rewilding projects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher E Gordon
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World and Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Michelle Greve
- Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Michelle Henley
- Applied Behavioural Ecology and Ecosystem Research Unit, School of Environmental Sciences, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa
- Elephants Alive, Hoedspruit, South Africa
- Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Humanities, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | | | - Paul Allin
- Transfrontier Africa, Hoedspruit, South Africa
| | - Jens-Christian Svenning
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World and Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
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5
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Blanchard G, Munoz F. Revisiting extinction debt through the lens of multitrophic networks and meta‐ecosystems. OIKOS 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.09435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Grégoire Blanchard
- AMAP, Univ. Montpellier, CIRAD, CNRS, INRAE, IRD Montpellier France
- AMAP, IRD, Herbier de Nouvelle Calédonie Nouméa Nouvelle Calédonie
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6
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Letourneau J, Holmes ZC, Dallow EP, Durand HK, Jiang S, Carrion VM, Gupta SK, Mincey AC, Muehlbauer MJ, Bain JR, David LA. Ecological memory of prior nutrient exposure in the human gut microbiome. THE ISME JOURNAL 2022; 16:2479-2490. [PMID: 35871250 PMCID: PMC9563064 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-022-01292-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Revised: 07/05/2022] [Accepted: 07/07/2022] [Indexed: 04/20/2023]
Abstract
Many ecosystems have been shown to retain a memory of past conditions, which in turn affects how they respond to future stimuli. In microbial ecosystems, community disturbance has been associated with lasting impacts on microbiome structure. However, whether microbial communities alter their response to repeated stimulus remains incompletely understood. Using the human gut microbiome as a model, we show that bacterial communities retain an "ecological memory" of past carbohydrate exposures. Memory of the prebiotic inulin was encoded within a day of supplementation among a cohort of human study participants. Using in vitro gut microbial models, we demonstrated that the strength of ecological memory scales with nutrient dose and persists for days. We found evidence that memory is seeded by transcriptional changes among primary degraders of inulin within hours of nutrient exposure, and that subsequent changes in the activity and abundance of these taxa are sufficient to enhance overall community nutrient metabolism. We also observed that ecological memory of one carbohydrate species impacts microbiome response to other carbohydrates, and that an individual's habitual exposure to dietary fiber was associated with their gut microbiome's efficiency at digesting inulin. Together, these findings suggest that the human gut microbiome's metabolic potential reflects dietary exposures over preceding days and changes within hours of exposure to a novel nutrient. The dynamics of this ecological memory also highlight the potential for intra-individual microbiome variation to affect the design and interpretation of interventions involving the gut microbiome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey Letourneau
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Zachary C Holmes
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Eric P Dallow
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Heather K Durand
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Sharon Jiang
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Verónica M Carrion
- Duke Office of Clinical Research, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Savita K Gupta
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Adam C Mincey
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Michael J Muehlbauer
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - James R Bain
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
- Department of Medicine (Endocrinology), Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Lawrence A David
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA.
- Program in Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA.
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7
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Factors affecting functional diversity of grassland vegetations. Ecol Modell 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2022.110078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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8
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Khalighi M, Sommeria-Klein G, Gonze D, Faust K, Lahti L. Quantifying the impact of ecological memory on the dynamics of interacting communities. PLoS Comput Biol 2022; 18:e1009396. [PMID: 35658019 PMCID: PMC9200327 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1009396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2021] [Revised: 06/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecological memory refers to the influence of past events on the response of an ecosystem to exogenous or endogenous changes. Memory has been widely recognized as a key contributor to the dynamics of ecosystems and other complex systems, yet quantitative community models often ignore memory and its implications. Recent modeling studies have shown how interactions between community members can lead to the emergence of resilience and multistability under environmental perturbations. We demonstrate how memory can be introduced in such models using the framework of fractional calculus. We study how the dynamics of a well-characterized interaction model is affected by gradual increases in ecological memory under varying initial conditions, perturbations, and stochasticity. Our results highlight the implications of memory on several key aspects of community dynamics. In general, memory introduces inertia into the dynamics. This favors species coexistence under perturbation, enhances system resistance to state shifts, mitigates hysteresis, and can affect system resilience both ways depending on the time scale considered. Memory also promotes long transient dynamics, such as long-standing oscillations and delayed regime shifts, and contributes to the emergence and persistence of alternative stable states. Our study highlights the fundamental role of memory in communities, and provides quantitative tools to introduce it in ecological models and analyse its impact under varying conditions. An ecosystem is said to exhibit ecological memory when its future states do not only depend on its current state but also on its initial state and trajectory. Memory may arise through various mechanisms as organisms adapt to their environment, modify it, and accumulate biotic and abiotic material. It may also emerge from phenotypic heterogeneity at the population level. Despite its commonness in nature, ecological memory and its potential influence on ecosystem dynamics have been so far overlooked in many applied contexts. Here, we use modeling to investigate how memory can influence the dynamics, composition, and stability landscape of communities. We incorporate long-term memory effects into a multi-species model recently introduced to investigate alternative stable states in microbial communities. We assess the impact of memory on key aspects of model behavior and further examine our findings using a model parameterized by empirical data from the human gut microbiota. Our approach for modeling long-term memory and studying its implications has the potential to improve our understanding of microbial community dynamics and ultimately our ability to predict, manipulate, and experimentally design microbial ecosystems. It could also be applied more broadly in the study of systems composed of interacting components.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moein Khalighi
- Department of Computing, Faculty of Technology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
- * E-mail: (MK); (LL)
| | | | - Didier Gonze
- Unité de Chronobiologie Théorique, Faculté des Sciences CP 231, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
| | - Karoline Faust
- Laboratory of Molecular Bacteriology (Rega Institute), Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Leo Lahti
- Department of Computing, Faculty of Technology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
- * E-mail: (MK); (LL)
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9
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Spatial and seasonal group size variation of wild mammalian herbivores in multiple use landscapes of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0267082. [PMID: 35439256 PMCID: PMC9017940 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0267082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2021] [Accepted: 04/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Group sizes of wild herbivores can be indicators of ecosystem health and proxies for individual and population fitness, particularly in areas where human activities have become increasingly common. We recorded 176 single- and multi-species groups of wild herbivores in human-dominated landscapes of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA) during dry and wet seasons. We analyzed how wild herbivore group sizes were affected by: (1) season, (2) distance to fully protected area (NCA crater) and to streams, (3) distance to human settlements, and (4) numbers of livestock. Group sizes were generally larger during the wet season than during the dry season and varied seasonally with distance to NCA crater, streams, and human settlements. During the wet season, larger groups were observed further away from the NCA crater whereas the opposite pattern was apparent during the dry season. Average wild herbivore group sizes increased by about three-fold with increasing distance from the streams during the dry season but were invariant to streams during the wet season. Furthermore, during the dry season, group sizes were larger close to settlements but varied little with distance to settlements during the wet season. While livestock presence did not directly affect wild herbivore group size, distance to settlements, streams and distance to the Ngorongoro crater in interaction with rainfall seasonality did. We conclude that the NCA crater functions as a key resource area for wild herbivores such as wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) and zebra (Equus quagga burchelli) during the dry season, highlighting the need for its full protection status in this Man and Biosphere reserve.
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10
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Galindo V, Giraldo C, Lavelle P, Armbrecht I, Fonte SJ. Land use conversion to agriculture impacts biodiversity, erosion control, and key soil properties in an Andean watershed. Ecosphere 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.3979] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Víctor Galindo
- Fundación CIPAV Cali Colombia
- Universidad del Valle, Facultad de Ciencias, Biology Department Cali Colombia
| | | | - Patrick Lavelle
- Sorbonne Université, Institute of Ecological and Environmental Sciences Paris France
| | - Inge Armbrecht
- Universidad del Valle, Facultad de Ciencias, Biology Department Cali Colombia
| | - Steven J. Fonte
- Department of Soil and Crop Sciences Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado USA
- Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado USA
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11
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Shilereyo MT, Magige FJ, Ogutu JO, Røskaft E. Land use and habitat selection by small mammals in the Tanzanian Greater Serengeti Ecosystem. Glob Ecol Conserv 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022] Open
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12
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Sigsgaard EE, Olsen K, Hansen MDD, Hansen OLP, Høye TT, Svenning JC, Thomsen PF. Environmental DNA metabarcoding of cow dung reveals taxonomic and functional diversity of invertebrate assemblages. Mol Ecol 2020; 30:3374-3389. [PMID: 33205529 PMCID: PMC8359373 DOI: 10.1111/mec.15734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2020] [Accepted: 11/02/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Insects and other terrestrial invertebrates are declining in species richness and abundance. This includes the invertebrates associated with herbivore dung, which have been negatively affected by grazing abandonment and the progressive loss of large herbivores since the Late Pleistocene. Importantly, traditional monitoring of these invertebrates is time‐consuming and requires considerable taxonomic expertise, which is becoming increasingly scarce. In this study, we investigated the potential of environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding of cow dung samples for biomonitoring of dung‐associated invertebrates. From eight cowpats we recovered eDNA from 12 orders, 29 families, and at least 54 species of invertebrates (mostly insects), representing several functional groups. Furthermore, species compositions differed between the three sampled habitats of dry grassland, meadow, and forest. These differences were in accordance with the species’ ecology; for instance, several species known to be associated with humid conditions or lower temperatures were found only in the forest habitat. We discuss potential caveats of the method, as well as directions for future study and perspectives for implementation in research and monitoring.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kent Olsen
- Natural History Museum Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark
| | | | - Oskar Liset Pryds Hansen
- Department of Biology, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.,Natural History Museum Aarhus, Aarhus, Denmark
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13
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Klop‐Toker K, Clulow S, Shuttleworth C, Hayward MW. Are novel ecosystems the only novelty of rewilding? Restor Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.13241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kaya Klop‐Toker
- School of Environmental and Life Sciences University of Newcastle Callaghan New South Wales Australia
| | - Simon Clulow
- School of Environmental and Life Sciences University of Newcastle Callaghan New South Wales Australia
- Department of Biological Sciences Macquarie University Sydney New South Wales Australia
| | | | - Matt W. Hayward
- School of Environmental and Life Sciences University of Newcastle Callaghan New South Wales Australia
- Centre for African Conservation Ecology Nelson Mandela University Port Elizabeth South Africa
- Mammal Research Institute University of Pretoria Pretoria South Africa
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14
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Fox S, Kotelba A. An Information-Theoretic Analysis of Flexible Efficient Cognition for Persistent Sustainable Production. ENTROPY 2020; 22:e22040444. [PMID: 33286218 PMCID: PMC7516917 DOI: 10.3390/e22040444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2020] [Revised: 03/27/2020] [Accepted: 04/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Amidst certainty, efficiency can improve sustainability by reducing resource consumption. However, flexibility is needed to be able to survive when uncertainty increases. Apropos, sustainable production cannot persist in the long-term without having both flexibility and efficiency. Referring to cognitive science to inform the development of production systems is well established. However, recent research in cognitive science encompassing flexibility and efficiency in brain functioning have not been considered previously. In particular, research by others that encompasses information (I), information entropy (H), relative entropy (D), transfer entropy (TE), and brain entropy. By contrast, in this paper, flexibility and efficiency for persistent sustainable production is analyzed in relation to these information theory applications in cognitive science and is quantified in terms of information. Thus, this paper is consistent with the established practice of referring to cognitive science to inform the development of production systems. However, it is novel in addressing the need to combine flexibility and efficiency for persistent sustainability in terms of cognitive functioning as modelled with information theory.
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Thierry H, Rogers H. Where to rewild? A conceptual framework to spatially optimize ecological function. Proc Biol Sci 2020; 287:20193017. [PMID: 32126955 PMCID: PMC7126074 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2019.3017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2020] [Accepted: 02/11/2020] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Rewilding is an approach aiming at restoring ecosystems to a self-sustaining state by restoring ecological function through active reintroductions or passive management. Locations for most rewilding-through-reintroduction efforts today are selected based on the suitability of the habitat for the reintroduced species, often with little consideration of where the ecological function is most needed. We developed the Spatial Planning of Rewilding Effort (Spore) framework to identify priority locations for rewilding projects through simultaneous consideration of habitat suitability and provisioning of ecological function. We use the island of Guam as a case study for a potential rewilding project, as the island has functionally lost all native seed dispersers as a result of the invasive brown treesnake (Boiga irregularis). The Såli (Micronesian starling, Aplonis opaca) is a good candidate for rewilding to restore ecological function, because it is an effective seed disperser with a localized remnant population. Using Spore, we identify three priority areas for the restoration of seed dispersal, each subdivided into management units. By recognizing the influence of landscape structure and the behaviour of the reintroduced species on the spatial pattern of the function provided by that species, this approach should lead to improved ecological outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hugo Thierry
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, 251 Bessey Hall, Ames, IA 50011, USA
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16
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Pedersen PBM, Ejrnæs R, Sandel B, Svenning JC. Trophic Rewilding Advancement in Anthropogenically Impacted Landscapes (TRAAIL): A framework to link conventional conservation management and rewilding. AMBIO 2020; 49:231-244. [PMID: 31201614 PMCID: PMC6889113 DOI: 10.1007/s13280-019-01192-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2018] [Revised: 12/15/2018] [Accepted: 04/15/2019] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
A variety of rewilding initiatives are being implemented across Europe, generally characterized by a more functionalist approach to nature management compared to the classic compositional approach. To address the increasing need for a framework to support implementation of rewilding in practical management, we present TRAAIL-Trophic Rewilding Advancement in Anthropogenically Impacted Landscapes. TRAAIL has been co-produced with managers and other stakeholders and provides managers with a framework to categorize rewilding initiatives and to link conventional nature management and rewilding by guiding steps towards a higher degree of self-regulation. Applying TRAAIL to data obtained in a Danish survey of rewilding-inspired initiatives we find that out of 44 initiatives there is no "Full rewilding" initiatives, 3 "Near-full rewilding" initiatives, 23 "Partial rewilding" initiatives, 2 "minimal rewilding" initiatives and 16 "Effort-intensive conservation management" initiatives. This study shows how TRAAIL can guide and inform trophic rewilding on a local and national scale.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pil Birkefeldt Møller Pedersen
- Section for Ecoinformatics & Biodiversity, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, 8000 Århus C, Denmark
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, 8000 Århus C, Denmark
- Section for Biodiversity & Conservation, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Grenåvej 14, Rønde, 8410 Århus, Denmark
| | - Rasmus Ejrnæs
- Section for Biodiversity & Conservation, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Grenåvej 14, Rønde, 8410 Århus, Denmark
| | - Brody Sandel
- Section for Ecoinformatics & Biodiversity, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, 8000 Århus C, Denmark
- Department of Biology, Santa Clara University, 500 El Camino Real, Santa Clara, CA 95053 USA
| | - Jens-Christian Svenning
- Section for Ecoinformatics & Biodiversity, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, 8000 Århus C, Denmark
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, 8000 Århus C, Denmark
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17
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Schweiger AH, Svenning J. Analogous losses of large animals and trees, socio‐ecological consequences, and an integrative framework for rewilding‐based megabiota restoration. PEOPLE AND NATURE 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/pan3.10066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Andreas H. Schweiger
- Plant Ecology Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research (BayCEER) University of Bayreuth Bayreuth Germany
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE) Aarhus University Aarhus Denmark
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity Department of Bioscience Aarhus University Aarhus Denmark
| | - Jens‐Christian Svenning
- Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE) Aarhus University Aarhus Denmark
- Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity Department of Bioscience Aarhus University Aarhus Denmark
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18
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Van Meerbeek K, Muys B, Schowanek SD, Svenning JC. Reconciling Conflicting Paradigms of Biodiversity Conservation: Human Intervention and Rewilding. Bioscience 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biz106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
There are strong opposing views among conservationists about whether we have to intervene to safeguard our natural heritage or not. In the Western European tradition, human intervention has been dominating, whereas, elsewhere, rewilding aimed at restoring self-regulating ecosystems has often been preferred. However, cultural rather than ecological differences are at the root of these opposing paradigms, leading to management strategies that are not always optimal for biodiversity conservation. In the present article, we propose a framework based on the relationship between ecosystem dynamics and the human footprint, including land-use legacies, to guide the mixture of rewilding and intervention practices in order to ensure a biodiverse future. We argue that these paradigms are not conflicting but complementary and advocate for rewilding where possible, human intervention where needed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Bart Muys
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Simon D Schowanek
- Department of Bioscience and the Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), at Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Jens-Christian Svenning
- Department of Bioscience and the Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), at Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
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19
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van Klink R, WallisDeVries MF. Risks and opportunities of trophic rewilding for arthropod communities. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2018; 373:rstb.2017.0441. [PMID: 30348868 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2017.0441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/30/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Trophic rewilding is a restoration strategy focusing on the restoration of trophic interactions to promote self-regulating, biodiverse ecosystems. It has been proposed as an alternative to traditional conservation management in abandoned or defaunated areas. Arthropods constitute the most species-rich group of eukaryotic organisms, but are rarely considered in rewilding. Here, we first present an overview of direct and indirect pathways by which large herbivores and predators affect arthropod communities. We then review the published evidence of the impacts of rewilding with large herbivores on arthropods, including grey literature. We find that systematic monitoring is rare and that a comparison with a relevant control treatment is usually lacking. Nevertheless, the available data suggest that when the important process of top-down control of large-herbivore populations is missing, arthropod diversity tends to decrease. To ensure that rewilding is supportive of biodiversity conservation, we propose that if natural processes can only partially be restored, substitutes for missing processes are applied. We also propose that boundaries of acceptable outcomes of rewilding actions should be defined a priori, particularly concerning biodiversity conservation, and that action is taken when these boundaries are transgressed. To evaluate the success of rewilding for biodiversity, monitoring of arthropod communities should be a key instrument.This article is part of the theme issue 'Trophic rewilding: consequences for ecosystems under global change'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roel van Klink
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research iDiv (Halle/Jena/Leipzig), Leipzig 04103, Germany
| | - Michiel F WallisDeVries
- De Vlinderstichting/Dutch Butterfly Conservation, Wageningen 6702 AD, The Netherlands.,Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen 6708 PB, The Netherlands
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20
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Torres A, Fernández N, Zu Ermgassen S, Helmer W, Revilla E, Saavedra D, Perino A, Mimet A, Rey-Benayas JM, Selva N, Schepers F, Svenning JC, Pereira HM. Measuring rewilding progress. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2018; 373:rstb.2017.0433. [PMID: 30348877 PMCID: PMC6231071 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2017.0433] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/12/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Rewilding is emerging as a promising restoration strategy to enhance the conservation status of biodiversity and promote self-regulating ecosystems while re-engaging people with nature. Overcoming the challenges in monitoring and reporting rewilding projects would improve its practical implementation and maximize its conservation and restoration outcomes. Here, we present a novel approach for measuring and monitoring progress in rewilding that focuses on the ecological attributes of rewilding. We devised a bi-dimensional framework for assessing the recovery of processes and their natural dynamics through (i) decreasing human forcing on ecological processes and (ii) increasing ecological integrity of ecosystems. The rewilding assessment framework incorporates the reduction of material inputs and outputs associated with human management, as well as the restoration of natural stochasticity and disturbance regimes, landscape connectivity and trophic complexity. Furthermore, we provide a list of potential activities for increasing the ecological integrity after reviewing the evidence for the effectiveness of common restoration actions. For illustration purposes, we apply the framework to three flagship restoration projects in the Netherlands, Switzerland and Argentina. This approach has the potential to broaden the scope of rewilding projects, facilitate sound decision-making and connect the science and practice of rewilding.This article is part of the theme issue 'Trophic rewilding: consequences for ecosystems under global change'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurora Torres
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig 04103, Germany .,Institute of Biology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale) 06108, Germany
| | - Néstor Fernández
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig 04103, Germany.,Institute of Biology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale) 06108, Germany
| | - Sophus Zu Ermgassen
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig 04103, Germany.,Institute of Biology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale) 06108, Germany.,Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology, School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Kent CT2 7NZ, UK
| | - Wouter Helmer
- Rewilding Europe, Toernooiveld 1, 6525 ED Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Eloy Revilla
- Department of Conservation Biology, Estación Biológica de Doñana CSIC, Seville 41092, Spain
| | - Deli Saavedra
- Rewilding Europe, Toernooiveld 1, 6525 ED Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Andrea Perino
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig 04103, Germany.,Institute of Biology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale) 06108, Germany
| | - Anne Mimet
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig 04103, Germany.,Department Computational Landscape Ecology, UFZ - Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Leipzig 04318, Germany
| | - José M Rey-Benayas
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Alcalá, 28805 Alcalá de Henares, Spain
| | - Nuria Selva
- Institute of Nature Conservation Polish Academy of Sciences, Av. Mickiewicza 33, 31-120 Krakow, Poland
| | - Frans Schepers
- Rewilding Europe, Toernooiveld 1, 6525 ED Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Jens-Christian Svenning
- Department of Bioscience, Center for Biodiversity Dynamics in a Changing World (BIOCHANGE), Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 114, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.,Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 114, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Henrique M Pereira
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig 04103, Germany.,Institute of Biology, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle (Saale) 06108, Germany.,Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos (CIBIO), Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairāo, Portugal
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