Ecological memory and restoring urban biodiversity

Restoring biodiversity in an urban setting is particularly challenging because habitats are small, fragmented and continually disturbed. Ecological memory t assists new restoration projects to become functioning ecosystems by providing a source of biodiversity between adaptive cycles. Heritage parks in cities and small pockets of remnant populations are potential reservoirs of ecological memory. They may hold the key to success for restoring urban biodiversity in the future. At the University of Victoria we are conducting a Natural Features Inventory of the main campus and we are exploring evidence of ecological memory that may assist with ecological restoration projects in other areas of the city. We have completed the tree layer inventory and will complete the shrub and herb layer by the end of May. We already have found mature Garry Oak Meadows and Douglas-fir forests in Mystic Vale, a ravine at the edge of the campus. We have already also found a mature grove of black cottonwood with unique canopies in a wetland associated with the headwaters of Bowker Creek, one of three creeks on campus. Material from these sites will be transplanted to nearby restoration projects to improve their success.