Measuring the ecological value of riparian habitat restoration on northern Wisconsin lakes

Background/Question/Methods In this experiment, riparian habitat restoration projects are underway on a sample of lakes in northcentral Wisconsin with the goal of quantifying the ecological benefits of the restoration via biotic surveys.  The project focuses restoration efforts on a sample of 6 lakes where habitat impacts are significant and private landowners on a significant portion of the shoreline agree to participate. Incentives are offered to recruit participants. The study also includes a control; shoreline on the same lakes, also with significant habitat alteration, that do not receive restoration efforts.  Restoration activities include conservation (no-cut, no disturbance) and restoration of native vegetation (terrestrial buffer zone and near-shore littoral zone), placement of physical structures and coarse woody debris to reduce erosion and run-off, and other proven management techniques designed to enhance wildlife diversity and abundance.  Finally, each developed lake is paired with an undeveloped (reference) lake with similar lake and upland characteristics.  Pre-restoration (baseline) and post-restoration quadrat and transect measures are made at paired reference (undeveloped), control (developed, no restoration), and impact (developed, with restoration) shorelines using the Before-After-Control-Impact-Paired (BACIP) design.  Surveys quantify relative abundance and diversity of native vegetation, herptiles, breeding birds, small mammals, and furbearers, and will recur periodically for a minimum of 10 years.

Results/Conclusions We documented alteration of riparian habitat (terrestrial and littoral zone) on our study lakes in northern Wisconsin. The alteration has resulted in negative changes in native plant communities, simplification of habitat structure, and changes in fish, amphibian, and bird populations.  We will continue to monitor the restoration projects for 10 years to determine whether these impaired populations respond to the habitat manipulations.