Functional attributes in ecological restoration in tropical forests: strategies and perspectives

Tropical forests harbor high biodiversity but are facing intense fragmentation and isolation due to deforestation. The conservation of these forests requires reducing deforestation, restoring degraded areas, and expanding protected areas. Restoration areas are typically environments with different degradation histories, low nutrient availability, and high environmental variability. In this context, the use of functional groups has been employed to assess the successional trajectory of secondary forests. This study conducted a review based on empirical and theoretical literature available in the Scopus® and Web of Science® indexing databases over the past 10 years (2012-2022) within the theme of “functional attributes in ecological restoration.” In total, 1,941 publications were found. We evaluated and discussed the literature found through a theoretical approach to the content of the articles. Our research showed that functional characteristics in restoration areas are associated with multiple ecosystem service functions, including supporting, provisioning, regulating, supporting, and cultural services. We identified studies emphasizing the importance of considering functional attributes (response attributes and effect attributes) when selecting species for use in restoration projects. However, the functional approach in restoration projects, although growing in recent years, is still in its early stages. Given the challenges posed by the restoration decade, understanding the relationships between functional attributes and ecological restoration in tropical forests is necessary to fill existing gaps. We also emphasize the importance of disseminating and making local information on functional attributes available in data repositories to improve access to this information.