Alien flora causes biotic homogenization in the biodiversity hotspot regions of India

Wani, Sajad Ahmad; Ahmad, Rameez; Gulzar, Ruquia; Rashid, Irfan; Khuroo, Anzar A.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.163856

Cited by 9 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 71 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…H mean −0.0179; Table 2). Accordingly, the overall level of homogenization in Malesia is similar to that reported for plants in analyses for other tropical, subtropical and temperate regions (Castro et al., 2010; Qian & Qian, 2022; Qian & Ricklefs, 2006; Wani et al., 2023; Winter et al., 2009) and the global average ( H sor = 0.022 ± 0.033) (Yang et al., 2021). However, because these studies used a range of dissimilarity measures, and some included species extirpations, they are not entirely comparable.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…Most regional studies of floristic compositional change in plants have only investigated changes in either total dissimilarity or turnover dissimilarity (e.g. Castro & Jaksic, 2008; Qian & Qian, 2022; Qian & Ricklefs, 2006; Wani et al., 2023; Winter et al., 2009), which limits available comparative data. This omission risks masking the different processes associated with homogenization, within and between regions, that are provided through partitioning of turnover and nestedness (Baeten et al., 2012) and should be a focus for future work.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Naturalizations have led to homogenization of the Malesian flora in the Anthropocene

Holmes,

Pelser,

Barcelona

et al. 2023

Journal of Biogeography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

AimWorldwide, floras are becoming homogenized at global scales, but regional patterns vary. Here, we present the first assessment for the Malesian phytogeographical region in terms of the timing of introductions, direction, magnitude and drivers of floristic change due to alien plant naturalizations.LocationMalesian phytogeographic region, including Southeast Asia and the Pacific.TaxonTracheophyta (vascular plants).MethodsWe compiled data on first records of naturalized plants in Malesia to investigate temporal trends in the rate and origin of introductions. We then calculated β‐diversity (including turnover and nestedness) for the native, naturalized and Anthropocene (native + naturalized) floras for each pair of island groups (36 pairs), and a homogenization index for the native and Anthropocene floras, using presence/absence data for 31,580 plant species. Mantel tests were used to investigate the geographic, climatic and anthropogenic correlates of dissimilarity and homogenization.ResultsAround 75% of all naturalized species documented to date were already reported for the first time within Malesia prior to 1950. This has led to homogenization between the historic (native) and contemporary (Anthropocene) floras for all island group pairs. Turnover was the most important process for driving compositional dissimilarity between island groups in Malesia in the native and Anthropocene floras, but homogenization resulted from decreases in nestedness and turnover. Differences in average taxonomic homogenization for island groups were associated with differences in their level of anthropogenic modification.Main ConclusionsThis study improves current understanding of the direction and drivers of floristic homogenization in one of the world's most diverse tropical regions. Alien plant introductions carry a long historical legacy in Malesia, and naturalizations of these plants have led to overall taxonomic homogenization of the region's flora. Expected increases in the magnitude of human modification, without appropriate policy, will likely lead to further reductions in the floristic uniqueness of island groups.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 82%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Naturalizations have led to homogenization of the Malesian flora in the Anthropocene

Holmes,

Pelser,

Barcelona

et al. 2023

Journal of Biogeography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Species richness pattern of all species, native and alien species in 200 m elevational belts in Bhutan region and Jammu & Kashmir, and, left, the proportion of alien species in each belt.global database(van Kleunen et al, 2019), but similar to that which comes from a recent study based on checklists from the relevant states(Wani et al, 2023). The vanKleunen et al (2019) database reports 606 naturalised alien species in the Himalaya, but in our appraisal only ~50% of these species are alien, and the remainder are native.…”

supporting

confidence: 62%

“…Here we have presented a comprehensive database of alien plant species in the Himalaya, extending a recently published database which documents 771 alien species, and shows that they have wider geographical ranges, on average, than natives (Wani et al, 2022(Wani et al, , 2023. We document 1471 alien species (14% of the described flora), and add estimates of elevational ranges.…”

Section: Species Richness Patternsmentioning

confidence: 87%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Constructing a database of alien plants in the Himalaya to test patterns structuring diversity

Rana,

Dangwal,

Rawat

et al. 2024

Ecology and Evolution

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Differences in the number of alien plant species in different locations may reflect climatic and other controls that similarly affect native species and/or propagule pressure accompanied with delayed spread from the point of introduction. We set out to examine these alternatives for Himalayan plants, in a phylogenetic framework. We build a database of alien plant distributions for the Himalaya. Focusing on the well‐documented regions of Jammu & Kashmir (west) and Bhutan (east) we compare alien and native species for (1) richness patterns, (2) degree of phylogenetic clustering, (3) the extent to which species‐poor regions are subsets of species‐rich regions and (4) continental and climatic affinities/source. We document 1470 alien species (at least 600 naturalised), which comprise ~14% of the vascular plants known from the Himalaya. Alien plant species with tropical affinities decline in richness with elevation and species at high elevations form a subset of those at lower elevations, supporting location of introduction as an important driver of alien plant richness patterns. Separately, elevations which are especially rich in native plant species are also rich in alien plant species, suggesting an important role for climate (high productivity) in determining both native and alien richness. We find no support for the proposition that variance in human disturbance or numbers of native species correlate with alien distributions. Results imply an ongoing expansion of alien species from low elevation sources, some of which are highly invasive.

show abstract

Disentangling the impacts of plant co-invasions: additive, antagonistic and synergistic

Lone,

Ahmed,

Rasray

et al. 2024

Biol Invasions

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Alien flora causes biotic homogenization in the biodiversity hotspot regions of India

Cited by 9 publications

References 71 publications

Naturalizations have led to homogenization of the Malesian flora in the Anthropocene

Naturalizations have led to homogenization of the Malesian flora in the Anthropocene

Constructing a database of alien plants in the Himalaya to test patterns structuring diversity

Disentangling the impacts of plant co-invasions: additive, antagonistic and synergistic

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About