Restoration Ecology

Feature publications
Spatial restoration ecology: placing restoration in a landscape context
Gilby et al. 2018 Bioscience
Researchers on conservation planning and practice have increasingly recognized and adopted the pivotal role of landscape attributes in shaping the effectiveness of protected areas. However, the degree to which these concepts have been integrated into habitat restoration projects has not been quantified. 
UN decade on ecosystem restoration 2021-2030: what chance for success in restoring coastal ecosystems?  
Waltham et al. 2020 Frontiers in Marine Science
​On 1 March 2019, the United Nations (UN) General Assembly (New York) declared 2021–2030 the “UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.” This call to action has the purpose of recognizing the need to massively accelerate global restoration of degraded ecosystems, to fight the climate heating crisis, enhance food security, provide clean water and protect biodiversity on the planet. 
Assessing methods for restoring seagrass (Zostera muelleri) in Australia’s subtropical waters
Wendlander et al. 2020 Marine and Freshwater Research
Zostera muelleri, the dominant seagrass species along the eastern coastline of Australia, has declined due to anthropogenic stressors, including reduced water clarity. Water quality has improved in recent years, but restoration efforts are hampered by limited knowledge of transplantation methods. To support future restoration efforts, we tested multiple techniques for transplanting mature seagrass shoots.

Restoration ecology publications 

Rod Connolly's publications relating to restoration ecology 
2025​ 
  • McAneney CA, Sievers M, Reeves SE, Rasmussen JA, Leaning A, Lopez-Marcano S, Connolly RM (2024) Fish use of restored shellfish reefs extends beyond the reef edge. Restoration Ecology PDF
  • ​Sievers M , Rasmussen JA, Nielsen B, Steinfurth RC, Flindt MR, Melvin SD, Connolly RM (2025) Restored seagrass rapidly provides high quality habitat for mobile animals. Restoration Ecology 33:14343 PDF
  • Richardson MA, Buelow CA, Connolly RM, Gillies CL, Nenadic N, Porter R, Traurig M, McDougall C (2025) Characterising tropical oyster reefs: invertebrate-environment associations and a newly documented reef building species. Marine Environmental Research 208:107136 PDF
  • Richardson MA, Connolly RM, Gillies CL, McDougall C (2025) Settlement and tidal zonation patterns of closely related oysters within the genus Saccostrea in a subtropical Australian estuary: implications for restoration. Restoration Ecology PDF
  • ​zu Ermgassen PSE, Worthington TA, Gair JR, Garnett EE, Mukherjee N, Longley-Wood K, Nagelkerken I, Abrantes K, Aburto-Oropeza O, Acosta A, da Rocha Araujo AR, Baker R, Barnett A, Beitl CM, Benzeev R, Brookes J, Castellanos-Galindo GA, Ching Chong V, Connolly RM, et al (2025) Mangroves support an estimated annual abundance of over 700 billion juvenile fish and invertebrates. Communications Earth and Environment 6:299 PDF ​
  • ​Slobodian L, Buelow CA, Baker SC, Alvarez S, Wood KC, Villarreal-Rosas J, Brown CJ, Adame MF, Amir AA, Bukoski JJ, Bell-James J, Calzada Vazquez Vella A, Carrie RH, Connolly RM, Golebie EJ, Foster RA, Heck N, Sidik F, Turschwell MP, White AR, Andradi-Brown DA (2025) Quantifying the presence and potential of national legal frameworks for global mangrove protection. Cell Reports Sustainability PDF

2024
  • Connolly RM, Herrera C, Rasmussen J, Buelow CA, Sievers M, Jinks KI, Brown CJ, Lopez-Marcano S, Sherman CDH, Martínez-Baena F, Martin B, Baring R, Reeves SE (2024) Estimating enhanced fish production on restored shellfish reefs using automated data collection from underwater videos. Journal of Applied Ecology 61:633-646 ​PDF​
  • Rasmussen JA, Bennett WW, Melvin SD, Sievers M, McAneney CA, Leaning A, Connolly RM (2024) Stuck in the mangrove mud: the risk of trace element exposure to shore crabs in restored urban mangroves. Science of the Total Environment 955:177064 PDF
  • ​Taylor MD, Gaston TF, Raoult V, Hughes JM, Murphy J, Hewitt DE, Connolly RM, Ochwada-Doyle FA (2024) Recreational fishing expenditure as an indicator of coastal wetland habitat value. Environmental Science: Advances 3:1259-1270 ​PDF
  • Sievers M, Connolly RM, Finlayson KA, Kitchingman ME, Ostrowski A, Pearson RM, Turschwell MP, Adame MF, Bugnot AB, Ditria E, Hale R, Silliman BR, Swearer SE, Valdez SR, Brown CJ (2024) Enhanced but highly variable biodiversity outcomes from coastal restoration: a global synthesis. One Earth 7:623-634 PDF
  • Carruthers TJB, Jones B, Terrell MK, Scheibly JF, Player BJ, Black VA, Ehrenwerth JR, Biber PD, Connolly RM, Crooks S, Curole JP, Darnell KM, Dausman AD, DeJong AL, Doyle SM, Esposito CR, Friess DA, Fourqurean JW, Georgiou IY, Grimsditch GD, He S, Hillmann ER, Holm GO, Howard J, Jung H, Jupiter SD,  Kiskaddon E, Krauss KW, Lavery PS, Liu B, Lovelock CE, Mack SK, Macreadie PI, McGlathery KJ, Megonigal JP, Roberts BJ, Settelmyer S, Staver LW, Stevens HJ, Sutton-Grier AE, Villa JA, White JR, Waycott M (2024) Identifying and filling critical knowledge gaps can optimize financial viability of blue carbon projects in tidal wetlands. Frontiers in Environmental Science 12, 1421850 PDF
  • Buelow CA, Connolly RM, Dunic JC, Griffiths L, Holgate B, Lee SL, Mackey BG, Maxwell PS, Pearson RM, Rajkaran A, Sievers M, Sousa AI, Tulloch VJD, Turschwell MP, Villarreal-Rosas J, Brown CJ (2024) Enabling conservation theories of change. Nature Sustainability 7:73-81 (see blog)​
  • Brown CJ, Campbell MD, Collier CJ, Turschwell MP, Saunders MI, Connolly RM (2024) Speeding up recovery of coastal habitats through management interventions that address constraints on dispersal and recruitment. Proceedings Royal Society B 291:20241065 PDF
  • ​Newberry B, Connolly RM, Melvin SD, Sievers M (2024). The utility of non-lethal morphometrics to evaluate fish condition. Austral Ecology 49:e13510 (link to publication)
  • Lekammudiyanse MU, Saunders MI, Flint N, Irving A, Aiken C, Clark DE, Berthelsen A, Hindmarsh B, Hooks R, Connolly RM, Sievers M, Rasheed MA, Smith TM, Glasby TM, Sherman CDH, Jackson EL (2024) Environmental drivers of flowering in the genus Zostera and spatio-temporal variability of Zostera muelleri flowering in Australasia. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 34:e4068​ ​PDF
2023
  • Sievers M, Brown CJ, McGowan J, Turschwell MP, Buelow CA, Holgate B, Pearson RM, Adame MF, Andradi-Brown DA, Arnell A, Mackey BG, zu Ermgassen PSE, Gosling J, McOwen CJ, Worthington TA, Connolly RM (2023) Co-occurrence of biodiversity, carbon storage, coastal protection, and fish and invertebrate production to inform global mangrove conservation planning. Science of the Total Environment 904:166357 PDF
  • ​Kitchingman ME, Sievers M, Lopez-Marcano S, Connolly RM (2023) Fish use of restored mangroves matches that in natural mangroves regardless of forest age. Restoration Ecology 31:13806 PDF

2022
  • Sievers M, Brown CJ, Buelow CA, Hale R, Ostrowski A, Saunders MI, Silliman BR, Swearer SE, Turschwell MP, Valdez SR, Connolly RM (2022) Greater consideration of animals will enhance coastal restoration outcomes. Bioscience 72:1088-1098 PDF
  • Richardson MA, Zhang Y, Connolly RM, Gillies CL, McDougall C (2022) Some like it hot: the ecology, ecosystem benefits and restoration potential of oyster reefs in tropical waters. Frontiers in Marine Science 9:873768 PDF
  • Buelow CA, Connolly RM, Turschwell MP, Adame FA, Ahmadia GN, Andradi-Brown DA,  Bunting P, Canty SWJ, Dunic JC Friess DA, Lee SY, Lovelock CE, McClure EC, Pearson RM, Sievers M, Sousa AI, Worthington TA, Brown CJ (2022) Ambitious targets for mangrove and seagrass recovery. Current Biology 32:1641-1649 PDF​
  • ​Borland HP, Gilby BL, Henderson CJ, Connolly RM, Gorissen B, Ortodossi NL, Rummell AJ, Pittman SJ, Sheaves M, Olds AD (2022) Dredging transforms the seafloor and enhances functional diversity in urban seascapes. Science of the Total Environment 831:154811 PDF
  • Flindt MR, Oncken NS, Kuusemae K, Lange T, Aaskoven N, Winter S, Sousa AI, Rasmussen EK, Canal-Verges P, Connolly RM, Kristensen E (2022) Sand-capping stabilizes muddy sediment and improves benthic light conditions in eutrophic estuaries: laboratory verification and the potential for recovery of eelgrass (Zostera marina). Journal of Sea Research 181:102177 PDF

2021
  • Lowe EC, Steven R, Morris RL, Parris KM, Aguiar AC, Webb CE, Bugnot AB, Dafforn KA, Connolly RM, Mayer Pinto M (2022) Supporting urban ecosystem services across terrestrial, marine and freshwater realms. Science of the Total Environment (online Jan 2022)
  • Dunic JC, Brown CJ, Connolly RM, Turschwell MP, Cote IM (2021) Long-term declines and recovery of meadow area across the world’s seagrass bioregions. Global Change Biology 27:4096-4109 ​PDF
  • Gilby BL, Olds AD, Brown CJ, Connolly RM, Henderson CJ, Maxwell PS, Schlacher TA (2021) Applying systematic conservation planning to improve the allocation of restoration actions at multiple spatial scales. Restoration Ecology 29:13403 PDF
  • Waltham NJ, Alcott C, Barbeau MA, Cebrian J, Connolly RM, Deegan LA, Dodds K, Goodridge-Gaines LA, Gilby BL, Henderson CJ, McLuckie CM, Minello TJ, Norris GS, Ollerhead J, Pahl J, Reinhardt JF, Rezek RJ, Simenstad CA, Smith JAM, Sparks EL, Staver LW, Ziegler SL, Weinstein MP (2021) Tidal marsh restoration optimism in a changing climate and urbanizing seascape. Estuaries and Coasts 44:1681-1690 ​PDF​
  • Giffin AL, Brown CJ, Nalau J, Mackey BG, Connolly RM (2020) Marine and coastal ecosystem-based adaptation in Asia and Oceania: review of approaches and integration with marine spatial planning. Pacific Conservation Biology 27:104-117 PDF

2020​
  • Tan YM, Dalby O, Kendrick GA, Statton J, Sinclair EA, Fraser MW, Macreadie PI, Gillies C, Coleman RA, Waycott M, van Dijk K, Verges A, Ross JD, Campbell ML, Matheson FE, Jackson EL, Irving AD, Govers LL, Connolly RM, McLeod I, Rasheed MA, Kirkman H, Flindt MR, Langes T, Miller A, Sherman CD (2020) Seagrass restoration is possible: insights and lessons from Australia and New Zealand. Frontiers in Marine Science 7:617 PDF
  • Waltham NJ, Elliott M, Lee SY, Lovelock C, Duarte CM, Buelow C, Simenstad C, Nagelkerken I, Claassens L, Wen CCK, Barletta M, Connolly RM, Gillies C, Mitsch WJ, Ogburn MB, Purandare J, Possingham H, Sheaves M (2020) UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030: what chance for success in restoring coastal ecosystems? Frontiers in Marine Science 7:71 PDF
  • Wendlander NS, Lange T, Connolly RM, Kristensen E, Pearson RM, Valdemarsen T, Flindt MR (2020) Assessing methods for restoring seagrass (Zostera muelleri) in Australia’s subtropical waters. Marine and Freshwater Research 71:996-1005 PDF

2019
  • Gilby BL, Olds AD, Connolly RM, Henderson CJ, Schlacher TA (2019) Seascape context modifies how fish respond to restored oyster reef structures. ICES Journal of Marine Science 76:1131-1139 PDF

2018
  • Gilby BL, Olds AD, Connolly RM, Henderson CJ, Schlacher TA (2018) Spatial restoration ecology: placing restoration in a landscape context. Bioscience 68:1007-1019 PDF​
  • Gilby BL, Olds AD, Peterson CH, Connolly RM, Voss CM, Bishop MJ, Elliott M, Grabowski JH, Ortodossi NL, Schlacher TA (2018) Maximising the benefits of oyster reef restoration for finfish and their fisheries. Fish and Fisheries 19:931-947 PDF