Evaluating restoration success is a promising application of functional trait analysis. Functional traits are a valuable tool for assessing restoration outcomes because of their relationship to plant community structure and to the provisioning of ecosystem services. The range and abundance of traits can give insight to how an ecosystem is functioning and whether it is meeting restoration goals. This research focuses on how functional diversity is affected by meadow restoration projects. Using meadows in Northeast Ohio, we examined both before and after restoration diversity as well as restored and unrestored areas. In one study, two methods of seeding for restoration were compared to pre-restoration conditions. A paired study compared the plant communities in five restored and unrestored meadows. We used the North Carolina Vegetation Survey to sample species presence and cover. The TRY database was used to obtain trait information for the species identified, to investigate functional traits present and their diversity. Focal traits were selected that were available for the species present in the survey and were considered key life history traits (leaf, height and seed traits). We hypothesized that functional diversity in seeded restored areas would be greater than unrestored areas.
Results/Conclusions
Preliminary results indicate that percent native cover for restored meadows ranged from 57 - 95%. In meadows that were not restored percent native species cover ranged from 12 - 90%. In general, native species had greater cover in restored meadows than those that were not restored. Although there were no strong trends in species cover and presence, functional trait analysis will provide information on the patterns and differences between the restored and unrestored sites. Results from this study will aid in understanding the dynamic process of restoring native plant communities. It will also be useful to natural areas managers when planning restoration activities.