Restoring a Mediterranean grassland by replacing the natural stone cover and sowing the dominant grass

Léa Saby (1) , Elise Buisson (1) , Olivier Blight (2) , Christel Vidaller (1) , Thierry Dutoit (1)

1 IMBE - Institut méditerranéen de biodiversité et d'écologie marine et continentale
2 AU - Avignon Université

Degradation of grasslands is marked by a decrease in plant and insect diversity, biomass and soil composition. Such degradation has significant ecological implications for community stability and ecosystem functioning. Our study focuses on the sub-steppic Mediterranean grassland of the La Crau Plain. The dominant tussok grass species, Brachypodium retusum, was re-established after having manipulated the microenvironement by restoring the natural large stone cover on the soil surface. Twenty years after the experiment was set up, we revisited it with a multi-component approach to evaluate the effects of these treatments in the middle term.

Mots clés: Arthropod communities; Plant communities; Soil; Restoration ecology; Conservation; Seed bank

Domaines: Biodiversité et Ecologie; Milieux et Changements globaux; Ingénierie de l'environnement; Biologie animale; Ecologie, Environnement; Ecosystèmes; Interactions entre organismes

Léa Saby, Elise Buisson, Olivier Blight, Christel Vidaller, Thierry Dutoit. Restoring a Mediterranean grassland by replacing the natural stone cover and sowing the dominant grass. IAVS - International Association for Vegetation Science, Sep 2023, Coffs Harbour, Australia. ⟨hal-04554862⟩