Species loss leads to changes in ecosystem function and services, impacting human well-being. Although biodiversity restoration is pivotal to circumvent this situation, the techniques for restoring old-growth savannas are still limited and the restoration outcomes remain unpredictable. Here, we use a trait-based approach to understand the functional outcomes of ecological restoration via direct seeding in a Brazilian savanna (cerrado, hereafter neotropical savanna). We compared the functional composition from woody and non-woody component, total biomass, and biomass allocation of a restored relative to a degraded savanna (abandoned pasture) dominated by exotic grasses and a well-preserved old-growth native savanna. We found that the functional composition of restored communities was very similar to those dominated by exotic grasses, both characterized by a greater dominance of species with acquisitive traits, higher above-ground biomass, and lower investment in root biomass. In contrast, the native vegetation exhibited a dominance of conservative traits and higher investment in belowground rather than aboveground biomass. Even though the acquisitive traits in the restored savanna allow a fast aboveground biomass accumulation and soil cover, the lower belowground biomass investment in the restored savanna may limit its resistance and resilience to droughts and fires. Our findings suggest that restoration efforts in neotropical savanna should focus on fostering the establishment of slow-growing species to recover the ecosystem properties provided by the high biodiversity in neotropical savannas.

中文翻译：

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直播对恢复新热带稀树草原功能组成的效果如何？

物种丧失导致生态系统功能和服务发生变化，影响人类福祉。尽管恢复生物多样性对于规避这种情况至关重要，但恢复古老稀树草原的技术仍然有限，恢复结果仍然难以预测。在这里，我们使用基于特征的方法来了解通过在巴西稀树草原（cerrado，以下称为新热带稀树草原）。我们比较了恢复的相对于以外来草和保存完好的古老原生稀树草原为主的退化稀树草原（废弃牧场）的木质和非木质成分、总生物量和生物量分配的功能组成。我们发现恢复的群落的功能组成与以外来草为主的群落非常相似，两者的特点都是具有获取性状的物种占主导地位，地上生物量较高，对根系生物量的投资较低。相比之下，原生植被表现出保守性状的优势，对地下而不是地上生物量的投资更高。尽管恢复的稀树草原中的获取性状允许快速的地上生物量积累和土壤覆盖，在恢复的稀树草原上较低的地下生物量投资可能会限制其对干旱和火灾的抵抗力和复原力。我们的研究结果表明，新热带稀树草原的恢复工作应侧重于促进生长缓慢的物种的建立，以恢复新热带稀树草原高生物多样性提供的生态系统特性。