Invasive species: “back-seat drivers” of ecosystem change?

Bauer, Jonathan T.

doi:10.1007/s10530-011-0165-x

Cited by 124 publications

(119 citation statements)

References 84 publications

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“…With the alteration of natural disturbance or the introduction of new disturbances, resident species have become, thus, increasingly less adapted to the local environment whereas newcomers are better fitted and more competitive under the new conditions. With reference to this, alien species should then be regarded to as ''passengers'', not as ''drivers'' of ecosystem change, namely species which take advantage of altered disturbance regimes or other changes to which they are pre-adapted but that lead to declines in native biodiversity (Bauer 2012;MacDougall and Turkington 2005).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The response of plant community diversity to alien invasion: evidence from a sand dune time series

2014

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This study examines the process of invasion of coastal dunes in north-eastern Italy along a 60-year time series considering alien attributes (origin, residence time, invasive status, and growth form strategy) and habitat properties (species richness, diversity and evenness, proportion of aliens, and proportion of focal species). Vegetation changes through time were investigated in four sandy coastal habitats, using a fine-scale diachronic approach that compared vegetation data collected by use of the same procedure, in four time periods, from the 1950s to 2011. Our analysis revealed an overall significant decline of species richness over the last six decades. Further, both the average number of species per plot and the mean focal species proportion were proved to be negatively affected by the increasing proportion of alien species at plot level. The severity of the impact, however, was found to be determined by a combination of species attributes, habitat properties, and human disturbance suggesting that alien species should be referred to as ''passengers'' and not as ''drivers'' of ecosystem change. Passenger alien species are those which take advantage of disturbances or other changes to which they are adapted but that lead to a decline in native biodiversity. Their spread is facilitated by widespread anthropogenic environmental alterations, which create new, suitable habitats, and ensure human-assisted dispersal, reducing the distinctiveness of plant communities and inducing a process of biotic homogenization.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The response of plant community diversity to alien invasion: evidence from a sand dune time series

2014

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“…Alien and invasive plant species not only directly cause a decline in indigenous species, but they can alter ecosystems to such an extent that environmental harm ensues [43]. Various models have been used to described the dynamics of weed invasions [43].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Various models have been used to described the dynamics of weed invasions [43]. For example, Macdougall and Turkington [44] used "driver" and "passenger" models to examine whether native plant richness and relative abundance affected by two dominant grasses, Poa pratensis and Dactylis glomerata, in Cowichan Garry Oak reverve, Canada.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Invasive Plant Species in the National Parks of Vietnam

Dang

Thu

Dell

2012

Forests

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Abstract:The impact of invasive plant species in national parks and forests in Vietnam is undocumented and management plans have yet to be developed. Ten national parks, ranging from uncut to degraded forests located throughout Vietnam, were surveyed for invasive plant species. Transects were set up along roads, trails where local people access park areas, and also tracks through natural forest. Of 134 exotic weeds, 25 were classified as invasive species and the number of invasive species ranged from 8 to 15 per park. An assessment of the risk of invasive species was made for three national parks based on an invasive species assessment protocol. Examples of highly invasive species were Chromolaena odorata and Mimosa diplotricha in Cat Ba National Park (island evergreen secondary forest over limestone); Mimosa pigra, Panicum repens and Eichhornia crassipes in Tram Chim National Park (lowland wetland forest dominated by melaleuca); and C. odorata, Mikania micrantha and M. diplotricha in Son Tra Nature Conservation area (peninsula evergreen secondary forest). Strategies to monitor and manage invasive weeds in forests and national parks in Vietnam are outlined.

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“…Their findings imply maintaining a diverse ecosystem is the key to combat the opportunist invaders (see Fargione and Tilman, 2005). Bauer (2012) introduced the concept of back-seat driver model, where species possess qualities of both (hitchhiking) passenger and (steering) driver as pathways to dominance, to explain the continuous widespread infestation of such species as Microstegium vimineum (Japanese stilt grass). Zedler and Kercher (2004) in a review noted that wetlands are especially vulnerable to invasions and that 8 of 33 of the world's most invasive plants are wetland species.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A five year study of floristic succession in a restored urban wetland

Richardson

2013

Ecological Engineering

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a b s t r a c tThe Stream and Wetland Assessment Management Park (SWAMP) project created a wetland-stream complex that encompasses a wide array of micro-environments and hydrology. These diverse habitats were designed to facilitate ecosystem diversity via enhanced pathways for ecological succession during restoration. We took an empirical approach to examine floral succession under natural processes following wetland restoration of floodplain and marsh habitats. Survey plots were set up in four forest gaps in palustrine wetlands, each containing a Low Marsh and a High Marsh. During five years of recovery from the soil disturbance and upland vegetation removal, wetland species richness gradually increased from 24 to 38 species in the Low Marshes, where waterlogged conditions precluded upland species invasions. Conversely, upland species richness quickly declined from 69 to 29 species over time in the High Marsh, now subjected to increase flooding. The species successional patterns suggest a slower turnover in the wet Low Marsh, but faster turnover in the moist High Marsh. Following the intermediate disturbance hypothesis, we observed that High Marsh species richness reached its maximum in the first year of the vegetation survey, whereas even after five years the plant diversity in the Low Marsh has yet to peak. The once widespread Ligustrum sinense (Chinese privet) was decimated following the SWAMP restoration. However, the exotic invasive species, Microstegium vimineum (Japanese stilt grass) dominated the floodplain except in the wettest Low Marsh sites. Given the successional patterns of increased wetland species following restoration, we recommend removal of woody invasive species such as L. sinense to prevent their re-establishment followed by long-term monitoring and continued removal (5-7 years) of invasive species to allow native species establishment. Our study shows that the creation of wetter floodplain habitats with increased flooding suppresses the establishment of the highly invasive M. vimineum.

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Invasive species: “back-seat drivers” of ecosystem change?

Cited by 124 publications

References 84 publications

The response of plant community diversity to alien invasion: evidence from a sand dune time series

The response of plant community diversity to alien invasion: evidence from a sand dune time series

Invasive Plant Species in the National Parks of Vietnam

A five year study of floristic succession in a restored urban wetland

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