Recently, rehabilitation of Biological Soils Crusts (BSCs) has been pointed out as important by some authors in restoration literature, when attempting to return an ecosystem to its original trajectory after one or more disturbance events. BSCs’ importance in drylands is increasingly gaining attention due to their key role in determining the final patterning of arid and semiarid landscapes, as well as in affecting soil characteristics. Moreover, the use of Inoculation-based techniques (IBTs) using cyanobacteria in order to trigger the development of novel BSCs (Induced BSCs, IBSCs) proved to be a feasible tool when aiming at the rehabilitation of the ground, even in hyper-arid environments.
This session will feature contributions dealing with the most important characteristics of BSCs and IBSCs. Those features that make these communities a driving force in land stabilization and recovery will be outlined and results obtained using IBTs will be presented and discussed.