Natural ecosystems are under considerable stress from any number of anthropogenic impacts such as climate change and non-native species. The resulting unintentional changes over time are what we now refer to as novel ecosystems. However, humans have been designing and creating novel ecosystems for millennia. Landscape architects, as an example, are intimately involved in the design and creation of novel ecosystems, whether at small scales such as gardens, or at very large regional planning scales. Some of these novel ecosystems are designed with ecological principles in mind but many are not, leading to some interesting ecosystems placed on the landscape.
Results/Conclusions
I will illustrate the effects of including (and not including) ecological principles in design via case studies involving created wetlands. Older sites show very little relation to structure and function of natural wetlands whereas newer sites are beginning to at least physically resemble and function like their natural counterparts. I will show that hydrology, vegetative structure, and even microclimate can differ depending upon the design principles implemented.