Ground Beetle Biomonitoring on a Restored Tall Grass Prairie (Haliburton, Ontario)

Ground Beetle Biomonitoring on a Restored Tall Grass Prairie (Haliburton, Ontario)

Dorothy Travis

Abbey Gardens

Kaitlyn Fleming

4940

April, 2023

Online

Haliburton County, Abbey Gardens

Prairie Restoration

Abbey Gardens, a non-profit organization located in Haliburton County, Ontario, is dedicated to educating the public about eco-friendly agricultural practices and environmentally sustainable living. As part of their initiatives, Abbey Gardens has restored a 3.45-acre patch of land within their property to a tallgrass prairie (TGP) habitat. This restoration project involved the installation of native shrubs, flowers, and grasses characteristic of natural TGPs, and the area has been actively managed since its inception. The objective of this study is to assess the ecological success of the restored TGP habitat through biological monitoring. While the computed biotic indices did not exhibit strong significance due to a limited sample size and restricted sampling period, the overall ecological state of Abbey Gardens' TGP is promisingly functional. The restoration and management efforts have effectively transformed a once barren car park into a thriving ecosystem. This successful restoration project provides valuable insights that can be applied to revitalizing the fragmented and endangered tallgrass prairies across Southern Ontario.

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