National‐scale strategic approaches for managing introduced plants: insights from Australian acacias in South Africa

Wilgen, Brian W. van; Dyer, Colin; Hoffmann, J. H.; Ivey, Philip; Maitre, David C. Le; Moore, Joslin L.; Richardson, David M.; Wannenburgh, Andrew; Wilson, John R.

doi:10.1111/j.1472-4642.2011.00785.x

Cited by 161 publications

(189 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…Moreover, if an invasion is realized, substantial conflicts can result between utilization and negative impacts affecting the management options available. As such, the history of introduction and current cultivated status provide important background information both for predicting the rate of an invasion, and for devising management strategies (van Wilgen et al 2011).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A standardized set of metrics to assess and monitor tree invasions

et al. 2013

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Scientists, managers, and policy-makers need functional and effective metrics to improve our understanding and management of biological invasions. Such metrics would help to assess progress towards management goals, increase compatibility across administrative borders, and facilitate comparisons between invasions. Here we outline key characteristics of tree invasions (status, abundance, spatial extent, and impact), discuss how each of these characteristics changes with time, and examine potential metrics to describe and monitor them. We recommend quantifying tree invasions using six metrics: (a) current status in the region; (b) potential status; (c) the number of foci requiring management; (d) area of occupancy (AOO) (i.e. compressed canopy area or net infestation); (e) extent of occurrence (EOO)(i.e. range size or gross infestation); and (f) observa-tions of current and potential impact. We discuss how each metric can be parameterised (e.g. we include a practical method for classifying the current stage of invasion for trees following Blackburn's unified framework for biological invasions); their potential management value (e.g. EOO provides an indication of the area over which management is needed); and how they can be used in concert (e.g. combining AOO and EOO can provide insights into invasion dynamics; and we use potential status and threat together to develop a simple risk analysis tool). Based on these metrics, we propose a standardized template for reporting tree invasions that we hope will facilitate cross-species and inter-regional comparisons. While we feel this represents a valuable step towards standardized reporting, there is an urgent need to develop more consistent metrics for impact and threat, and for many specific purposes additional metrics are still needed (e.g. detectability is required to assess the feasibility of eradication).

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A standardized set of metrics to assess and monitor tree invasions

et al. 2013

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“…Information on local invasive species should be incorporated in the school syllabus. A key requirement for reducing the costs of Prosopis invasions and more effective and improve management is a national strategy-similar to the one implemented in Australia or the one suggested for invasive Australian Acacia species in South Africa (van Wilgen et al 2011;Australian Weeds Committee 2012).…”

Section: Implications For Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, further work in this area has been put on hold due to the conflicts of interest surrounding Prosopis use (Zachariades et al 2011;Wise et al 2012). A national strategy for tackling invasive Prosopis, along the lines of the one proposed for Australian Acacia species in South Africa (van Wilgen et al 2011), is urgently needed. A key prerequisite for such a strategy is the much improved understanding of the social dimensions of the problem.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stakeholder perceptions and practices regarding Prosopis (mesquite) invasions and management in South Africa

Shackleton

Maitre

Richardson

2014

Ambio

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Invasive alien trees impact the environment and human livelihoods. The human dimensions of such invasions are less well understood than the ecological aspects, and this is hindering the development of effective management strategies. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken to investigate the knowledge and perceptions of Prosopis between different stakeholder groups. Chi-squared tests, Welch ANOVAs, and Principle Component Analyses were run. Factors such as land tenure and proximity to invasions were especially important for explaining differences in perceptions and practices relating to Prosopis among different stakeholder groups. Most respondents were aware of Prosopis and considered it to be invasive (i.e., spreading). Costs associated with Prosopis were perceived to exceed benefits, and most stakeholders wanted to see a reduction in the abundance of Prosopis stands. The mean total cost for the management of Prosopis was US$ 1914 year -1 per farm, where costs ranged from under US$ 10 to over UD$ 500 per ha based on invasion densities and objectives for control. The findings highlight the need for more effective management interventions.

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“…Australian acacias are a good model group to understand plant invasions because Acacia is a speciose genus that contains many introduced and invasive species . They are also a good group for exploring SDMs because native ranges in Australia and introduced ranges in southern Africa are well known and documented (Van Wilgen et al 2011). Around 80 Australian acacias have been introduced in southern Africa, 36 of which were included in forestry trials Poynton 2009 , Table 1).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Around 80 Australian acacias have been introduced in southern Africa, 36 of which were included in forestry trials Poynton 2009 , Table 1). Currently, sixteen Acacia species are confirmed as invasive and three species are reported to be naturalized, but it is not clear whether other species are also likely to invade or not (Richardson et al 2010Van Wilgen et al 2011;Wilson et al 2011). …”

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confidence: 99%

Forestry trial data can be used to evaluate climate-based species distribution models in predicting tree invasions

Motloung

Robertson²,

Wilson³

2014

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Climate is frequently used to predict the outcome of species introductions based on the results from species distribution models (SDMs). However, despite the widespread use of SDMs for pre-and post-border risk assessments, data that can be used to validate predictions is often not available until after an invasion has occurred. Here we explore the potential for using historical forestry trials to assess the performance of climate-based SDMs. SDMs were parameterized based on the native range distribution of 36 Australian acacias, and predictions were compared against both the results of 150 years of government forestry trials, and current invasive distribution in southern Africa using true skill statistic, sensitivity and specificity. Classification tree analysis was used to evaluate why some Australian acacias failed in trials while others were successful. Predicted suitability was significantly related to the invaded range (sensitivity = 0.87) and success in forestry trials (sensitivity = 0.80), but forestry trial failures were under-predicted (specificity = 0.35). Notably, for forestry trials, the success in trials was greater for species invasive somewhere in the world. SDM predictions also indicate a considerable invasion potential of eight species that are currently naturalized but not yet widespread. Forestry trial data clearly provides a useful additional source of data to validate and refine SDMs in the context of risk assessment. Our study identified the climatic factors required for successful invasion of acacias, and accentuates the importance of integration of status elsewhere for risk assessment.

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National‐scale strategic approaches for managing introduced plants: insights from Australian acacias in South Africa

Cited by 161 publications

References 59 publications

A standardized set of metrics to assess and monitor tree invasions

A standardized set of metrics to assess and monitor tree invasions

Stakeholder perceptions and practices regarding Prosopis (mesquite) invasions and management in South Africa

Forestry trial data can be used to evaluate climate-based species distribution models in predicting tree invasions

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