On the relevance of floristic and quantitative studies to the restoration of degraded areas: the case of the Atlantic Forest hotspot<br />Running title: Insights for restoration in Atlantic Forest

Abstract

Ecological restoration is an important tool for the conservation of hotspots, and floristic and structural studies can provide theoretical and empirical support for this practice. Our goal was to highlight the relevance of knowledge provided by these studies to the development and success of restoration programs conducted in degraded areas in the Atlantic Forest, a top global hotspot for biodiversity conservation. Through the assessment of articles, books, book chapters, government documents, dissertations and theses, we comment on how floristic and quantitative parameters can provide structure and dynamic information on biological populations existing at restoration sites, allowing for inferences regarding management practices and strategies for the restoration of degraded areas and conservation of biodiversity.

Keywords

• anthropic impacts
• biodiversity conservation
• community data
• forest fragments
• resilience