Actions to conserve biodiversity
We have summarised evidence from the scientific literature about the effects of actions to conserve wildlife and ecosystems.
Review the evidence from the studies
Not sure what Actions are? Read a brief description.
122 Actions found
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122 Actions found
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Order results by:
Action | Effectiveness | Studies | Category | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Thin trees within forests: effects on understory plants Action Link | Likely to be beneficial | 37 | ![]() | |
Use prescribed fire: effect on understory plants Action Link | Trade-off between benefit and harms | 37 | ![]() | |
Use clearcutting to increase understory diversity Action Link | Trade-off between benefit and harms | 24 | ![]() | |
Thin trees within forests: effects on mature trees Action Link | Trade-off between benefit and harms | 18 | ![]() | |
Use prescribed fire: effects on young trees Action Link | Trade-off between benefit and harms | 17 | ![]() | |
Use prescribed fire: effects on mature trees Action Link | Likely to be ineffective or harmful | 16 | ![]() | |
Log/remove trees within forests: effects on mature trees Action Link | Likely to be ineffective or harmful | 15 | ![]() | |
Thin trees within forests: effects on young trees Action Link | Likely to be beneficial | 13 | ![]() | |
Use wire fencing to exclude large native herbivores Action Link | Likely to be beneficial | 13 | ![]() | |
Use wire fences within grazing areas to exclude livestock from specific forest sections Action Link | Likely to be beneficial | 12 | ![]() | |
Remove woody debris after timber harvest Action Link | Unlikely to be beneficial | 12 | ![]() | |
Log/remove trees within forests: effects on understory plants Action Link | Beneficial | 12 | ![]() | |
Use group-selection harvesting Action Link | Trade-off between benefit and harms | 9 | ![]() | |
Use soil scarification or ploughing to enhance germination Action Link | Unknown effectiveness (limited evidence) | 9 | ![]() | |
Use shelterwood harvesting Action Link | Trade-off between benefit and harms | 8 | ![]() | |
Use fertilizer Action Link | Trade-off between benefit and harms | 8 | ![]() | |
Use thinning followed by prescribed fire Action Link | Unlikely to be beneficial | 7 | ![]() | |
Use mechanical thinning before or after planting Action Link | Beneficial | 7 | ![]() | |
Prepare the ground before tree planting Action Link | Beneficial | 7 | ![]() | |
Thin trees after wildfire Action Link | Trade-off between benefit and harms | 6 | ![]() | |
Mechanically remove understory vegetation after tree planting Action Link | Unlikely to be beneficial | 6 | ![]() | |
Fence to prevent grazing after tree planting Action Link | Likely to be beneficial | 5 | ![]() | |
Use fertilizer after tree planting Action Link | Unlikely to be beneficial | 5 | ![]() | |
Use different planting or seeding methods Action Link | Unlikely to be beneficial | 5 | ![]() | |
Prevent livestock grazing in forests Action Link | Trade-off between benefit and harms | 4 | ![]() |
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Forest Conservation - Published 2016
Forest synopsis
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What are 'Individual studies' and 'Actions'?
Individual studies
An individual study is a summary of a specific scientific study, usually taken from a scientific journal, but also from other resources such as reports. It tells you the background context, the action(s) taken and their consequences.
If you want more detail please look at the original reference.
Actions
Each action page focuses on a particular action you could take to benefit wildlife or ecosystems.
It contains brief (150-200 word) descriptions of relevant studies (context, action(s) taken and their consequences) and one or more key messages.
Key messages show the extent and main conclusions of the available evidence. Using links within key messages, you can look at the paragraphs describing each study to get more detail. Each paragraph allows you to assess the quality of the evidence and how relevant it is to your situation.
Where we found no evidence, we have been unable to assess whether or not an intervention is effective or has any harmful impacts.