Restoration of coastal ecosystem engineers that trap sediment and dampen waves has proven to be difficult, especially in the wave‐exposed and eroding areas where they are needed the most. Environmental stressors, such as hydrodynamic stress and predation, can only be overcome if transplanted organisms are able to establish self‐facilitating feedbacks. We investigate if the artificial lowering of multiple environmental stressors can be used to give transplanted juveniles the opportunity to form a self‐sustainable system and thereby increase their long‐term survival on wave‐exposed and eroding shores. We designed a large field experiment using juvenile mussels (Mytilus edulis ) as model species on a wave‐exposed tidal flat in the Oosterschelde estuary (the Netherlands). We tested if the environmental stress caused by a high predation pressure and wave‐driven dislodgement could be reduced by a combination of artificial structures such as fences (to exclude predatory crabs), attachment substrates (such as coir‐net or oyster shells) and breakwaters. Despite a low overall mussel survival (29%), we found that under strong hydrodynamic conditions, experimental fences and attachment substrates increased the retention of transplanted mussel seed. However, modification of local hydrodynamic conditions using breakwaters did not improve mussel coverage preservation. Overall, this study highlights the potential of using techniques that lower multiple environmental stressors to create a window of opportunity for establishment in highly dynamic ecosystems.

中文翻译：

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通过降低环境压力来恢复高度动态环境中的贻贝床

事实证明，恢复捕获沉积物和抑制波浪的沿海生态系统工程师是很困难的，尤其是在最需要它们的波浪暴露和侵蚀区域。只有当移植的生物体能够建立自我促进的反馈时，才能克服环境压力因素，例如水动力压力和捕食。我们调查了人工降低多种环境压力源是否可以用来让移植的幼鱼有机会形成一个自我维持的系统，从而提高它们在暴露于海浪和侵蚀海岸上的长期存活率。我们在 Oosterschelde 河口（荷兰）的一个受波浪影响的潮滩上设计了一个大型田间试验，使用幼贻贝（Mytilus edulis）作为模型物种。我们测试了由高捕食压力和波浪驱动的移动引起的环境压力是否可以通过人工结构的组合来减少，如围栏（以排除掠食性螃蟹）、附着基质（如椰壳网或牡蛎壳）和防波堤. 尽管贻贝的总体存活率较低 (29%)，但我们发现在强水动力条件下，实验围栏和附着基质增加了移植贻贝种子的保留率。然而，使用防波堤改变当地的水动力条件并没有改善贻贝覆盖率的保存。总体而言，这项研究强调了使用降低多种环境压力因素的技术为在高度动态的生态系统中建立建立机会之窗的潜力。