Ecological restoration of Española Island of Opuntia megasperma
Ecological restoration of Española Island through adaptive management for the recovery of Opuntia megasperma var. orientalis on Española Island PC-13-22
This project is currently Active
Opuntia megasperma var. orientalis is a cactus species endemic to the island of Española. This keystone species serves as a food source for giant tortoises, nesting and feeding structures for birds, and refuge for many other endemic and native species that inhabit the island. Unfortunately, the O. megasperma population was drastically reduced by feral goats, which were introduced to Española two centuries ago. Although the goats were eradicated in 1978, O. megasperma has not been able to recover due to their slow growth (approx. 2 cm per year), natural herbivory by endemic fauna, and the arid climatic conditions of the island. Therefore, this project seeks to contribute to the restoration of the ecological integrity of Española Island through the recovery of the Opuntia megasperma var. orientalis population using innovative and effective restoration strategies.
Patricia is an Ecuadorian researcher who came to Galapagos in 1996 to work on her PhD thesis about the “human impact on native, endemic and introduced flora on the Galapagos Islands” and since...
Anna has always been fascinated by the biodiversity of the Galapagos Islands and the Amazon rainforest. Her desire to protect these unique ecosystems motivated her to pursue a Bachelor of Science in...
Pavel has always admired the people behind the great scientific discoveries both in his home, the Galapagos, as well as worldwide. Further, growing up in the "Enchanted Islands" allowed him to...
Jhon was born on Floreana, the first island colonized by people in the Galapagos Archipelago and, paradoxically, the one with the smallest population. This particularity allowed nature to be an...
I was born and raised in these "Enchanted Islands", which meant from a young age I was naturally immersed in the conservation of the place where I live. Growing up with relatively little technology...
Figure 18. Map of the population distribution of Opuntia megasperma var. orientalis on the island of Española.
Research questions
These are some of the relevant questions we have of this project: 1) How do we measure the success of the restoration actions of the intervened sites on Española? 2) What is the most cost-effective method (water-saving technology) to restore Española through replantation with Opuntia megasperma.
Ecological restoration on Española island
Our results
As part of the results of this project, we expect to answer the following questions: 1) How do we measure the success of the restoration actions of the intervened sites on Española? 2) What is the most cost-effective method (water-saving technology) to restore Española through replantation with Opuntia megasperma.
Keywords:
Española, adaptive management, Opuntia megasperma, water saving, ecological restoration, water scarcity, threatened species
Bibliographical References
Gibbs, J. P., Márquez, C., & Sterling, E. J. (2008). The role of endangered species reintroduction in ecosystem restoration: Tortoise-cactus interactions on Española Island, Galápagos. Restor. Ecol., 16(1), 88–93. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1526-100X.2007.00265.x
The ‘Charles Darwin Foundation for the Galapagos Islands’, in French ‘Fondacion Charles Darwin pour les Iles Galapagos’, Association Internationale sans but lucrative (AISBL), has its registered office at Avenue Louise 54, 1050 Brussels, Belgium. Trade Registry # 0409.359.103