Other meanings of Rewilding
Conservation
Rewilding is a conservation approach focused on restoring self-sustaining, natural ecosystems by reintroducing keystone species, reducing human intervention, and allowing ecological processes to resume. It aims to create resilient landscapes that function with minimal management, often involving the return of apex predators and large herbivores to rebalance food webs and promote biodiversity.1
Rewilding is grounded in the idea that ecosystems are dynamic and can self-regulate if given the space and the right species. Key principles include restoring trophic cascades, where top predators control herbivore populations, and promoting natural disturbances like flooding and fire. Methods range from passive rewilding, which simply removes human pressures and lets nature take its course, to active rewilding, which involves reintroducing species that have been extirpated. A notable example is the reintroduction of gray wolves to Yellowstone National Park in 1995, which triggered a cascade of ecological changes, including reduced elk overgrazing and the recovery of riparian vegetation.
Rewilding projects have proliferated across continents. In Europe, the Oostvaardersplassen in the Netherlands is a pioneering lowland rewilding site where large herbivores like red deer and Konik horses roam freely. The Iberian Highlands project in Spain aims to restore a vast landscape for the return of the Iberian lynx and cinereous vulture. In North America, the American Prairie in Montana is working to create a large connected reserve for bison and prairie dogs. In Asia, the rewilding of the Tibetan antelope in China's Chang Tang Nature Reserve has seen populations rebound from near extinction.2
Rewilding is not without its critics. Some argue that it is a backward-looking ideal that ignores the reality of human-modified landscapes, while others worry about the welfare of reintroduced animals and the potential for human-wildlife conflict. The concept of 'Pleistocene rewilding,' which proposes reintroducing species like elephants and lions to North America as proxies for extinct megafauna, has sparked intense debate. Additionally, rewilding can be slow to show results, and monitoring is often underfunded. Despite these challenges, many ecologists advocate for a pragmatic approach that integrates rewilding with sustainable land use.3
Beyond the headline projects, rewilding has many subtle dimensions. For instance, the reintroduction of beavers in the UK has been shown to create wetland habitats that benefit a wide range of species, including water voles and amphibians. In the ocean, 'rewilding' of kelp forests by protecting sea otters has led to increased carbon sequestration. Another niche area is 'rewilding the gut,' which uses fecal microbiota transplants to restore microbial diversity in humans, drawing inspiration from ecological principles. Additionally, the concept of 'trophic rewilding' is being applied to island ecosystems, where the removal of invasive species like rats has allowed seabird populations to recover, in turn fertilizing the soil and boosting plant growth.
This article focuses on the ecological restoration sense of rewilding.
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