Systematic review of field research reveals critical shortfalls for restoration of tropical grassy biomes

Scientists and policymakers are becoming aware of the pressing need to restore tropical grassy biomes (TGB), which are home to unique biodiversity and provide essential ecosystem services to hundreds of millions of people. However, TGB face increasing threats, including the forest- and tree-centric approaches that promote their degradation though we still lack a systematic assessment of where and how TGB restoration research has been done to guide policy and practice.
We synthesised knowledge on field restoration experiments by conducting a systematic literature review to map TGB restoration field studies, examine the association of restoration techniques and degradations sources, and investigate the diversity of indicators used to monitor restoration outcomes. 
TGB restoration was concentrated in Brazilian and Australian savannas, with large blindspots in Asia, Africa, and northern and western South America. Studies were largely context-dependent, with an inconsistent usage of restorat..., We conducted a systematic literature review about field research restoration in Tropical Grassy Biomes (TGB) and retrieved information from the selected papers. We presented such information in two main datasets: a general dataset (data_review: geographic coordinates, biome type, sources of degradation for each restoration site, degradation and restoration time length, manipulation of TGB main drivers, and restoration techniques) and another dataset for the indicators used to measure restoration success and their monitoring frequency intervals and length. We also present datasets used to standardize degradation source and restoration techniques, which were used to make the alluvial graphs. , , # Systematic review of field research for restoration of tropical grassy biomes

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.12jm63z5p](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.12jm63z5p)

Tropical grassy biomes (TGB) encompass the world’s ancient savannas, grasslands and shrublands which cover nearly 40% of the tropics, hold unique biodiversity and provide essential ecosystem services. Nonetheless, these biomes have been threatened and destroyed while also being overlooked in restoration science, policy and practice. Aiming to support achieving the agenda for TGB restoration under the UN Restoration Decade and recognizing the importance of reviews and field restoration experiments. We ran a systematic literature survey and extracted data from 90 peer reviewed articles to provided a broad overview of TGB restoration field research. Therefore, this dataset contain information from different literature field restoration experiments, encompassing sources of degradation, restoration techniques and the indicators u...