Taking the pulse of an ecosystem is not quite as straightforward as taking the pulse of a person, especially when that ecosystem is the Chesapeake Bay. At 195 miles long and 3,237 square miles in area, the size and complexity of the bay’s coupled social and ecological systems has challenged efforts to assess its health. Building on more than 30 y of research, Lefcheck et al. (1) offer an innovative way to take the pulse of this much loved and debilitated coastal estuary. By developing a model of the bay ecosystem that brings data from long-term, large-scale monitoring together with knowledge of the mechanisms underlying those patterns, Lefcheck et al. make a compelling case that ecosystem restoration initiatives of the last 30+ y are paying off.

中文翻译：

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基于生态系统的管理的价值[可持续性科学]

把握一个人的脉搏并不像把握一个人的脉搏那么直接，特别是当那个生态系统是切萨皮克湾时。海湾长195英里，面积3,237平方英里，其海湾的社会和生态系统耦合的规模和复杂性给评估其健康状况的努力提出了挑战。Lefcheck等人在30多年的研究基础上进行了研究。（1）提供了一种创新的方法来应对这个备受爱戴和衰弱的沿海河口的脉动。通过开发一个海湾生态系统模型，该模型可将长期，大规模监测获得的数据与这些模式背后的机理知识结合在一起。令人信服的案例是，过去30多年的生态系统恢复计划正在奏效。