Abstract
We proposed a stepwise methodology to determine the restoration priority of natural forests in an warm-temperate riparian buffer strip based on two indicator species, Ulmus davidiana var. japonica and Quercus hondae. In the first step, we estimated the potential habitat for coexistence and/or single occurrence of the two species which have different habitat requirement, by using generalized linear modeling. In the second step, we extracted the candidate sites for restoration which have high potential habitat suitability and severely degraded populations of the two species at the current status. In the third step, we mapped the high priority sites as those having adjacent seed sources for Q. hondae which has a strong constraint of seed dispersal, and those improve the habitat connectivity for U. davidiana var. japonica which has a strong constraint in occurrence of suitable habitats. This stepwise methods combining the site evaluation of the two species of different characteristics was thought to be effective for comprehensive selection of the restoration sites taking into account the different restoration objectives and practical restoration methods in riparian buffer strips.
