Biological invasions and biocultural diversity: linking ecological and cultural systems

Abstract

SUMMARYStudy of the ecological and economic effects of invasive species has paralleled their progressively pervasive influence worldwide, yet their cultural impacts remain largely unexamined and therefore unrecognized. Unlike biological systems, where the ecological consequences of biological invasions are primarily negative, from an ethnoscientific standpoint, invasive species' impacts on cultural systems span a range of effects. Biological invasions affect cultural groups in myriad, often unpredictable and at times contradictory ways. This review groups case studies into a conceptual matrix suggesting three categorically different cultural impacts of invasive species. Culturally impoverishing invasive species precipitate the loss or replacement of culturally important native species and their associated cultural practices. Culturally enriching invasive species augment cultural traditions, through their inclusion in lexicons, narratives, foods, pharmacopoeias and other tangible and intangible ends. Culturally facilitating invasive species can provide continuity and reformulation of traditional ethnobiological practices. An understanding of the processes by which invasive biota become culturally enriching, facilitating, or impoverishing can contribute to articulating interdisciplinary programmes aimed at simultaneously conserving biological and cultural diversity.

Home Gardenscapes as Sustainable Landscape Management on St. Eustatius, Dutch Caribbean

“…Some restoration ecologists promote only native plants, saying that non-native plants are not positive contributions to ecological diversity due to their potential to become invasive, lack of environmental services, and unsuitable adaptability to the area where they are planted [16]. The participants in our study, however, described how these plants transformed highly degraded land, added to the availability of cultural plant resources, and made positive changes in the landscape that suggest their role as "culturally enriching" to their homes and potentially "facilitating" to native flora [68]. Although our study focused on plants, the gardeners mentioned their role in providing habitat for the endangered Iguana delicatissima and sources of pollen for bees and hummingbirds, supporting potentially a diversity of fauna through gardenscape management [16].…”

The effects of indigenous prescribed fire on riparian vegetation in central California

“…As Keeley (2001) states, the spread and/or control of non-native taxa with fire is of general interest to conservationists and land managers, but this area of study is not well researched. In fact, non-native species present a major challenge in restoring indigenous fire regimes to riparian ecosystems (see Pfeiffer and Voeks 2008;Pfeiffer and Ortiz 2007). If the goal is to restore native plant dominance within an ecosystem with fire, then perhaps the short-term remedy may involve burning at times that are not typical for indigenous fires.…”

Dealing with non-native species: what makes the difference in South America?

“…In this sense, most of the more invasive species causing ecological impacts in Spain are today highly valued by people for game hunting, fishing, or commercial purposes (e.g., Clavero and García-Berthou 2006;Acevedo et al 2007;Tablado et al 2010). This cultural and economic attachment to invasive species is detrimental for developing control and eradication actions (Pfeirffer and Voeks 2008) and is observed in South America as well (Lambertucci and Speziale 2011;Fig. 6).…”

“…The low scientific output on non-native species shown by South American countries could be related to both their degree of development and cultural idiosyncrasies (Pfeirffer and Voeks 2008;Simberloff 2006;Pyšek et al 2008;Nuñez and Pauchard 2010). Although poor financial resources may explain the low research intensity (Pyšek et al 2008), we believe that there is also a socio-cultural basis at work, and that the understanding of current and historic cultural particularities of each region could help to better deal with the negative impacts of non-native species.…”

“…Most of the species introduced intentionally or unintentionally in South America that became invasive are of European or Eurasian origin (Rapoport and Marino1998;IUCN-ISSG 2000;Speziale and Ezcurra 2011) reflecting the strong movements of biota occurring over centuries as a result of the diaspora of European people who settled in America as if it were their homeland (Pfeirffer and Voeks 2008;Simberloff and Rejmánek 2011).…”