New Alien Plant Taxa for Italy and Europe: An Update

Abstract

Despite the wide amount of scientific contributions published on alien plant species, their diffusion dynamics, and their interactions with native taxa, it is increasingly difficult to slow down their spreading and their negative impact on habitats. Last recent years, in fact, a sharp rise in the number of new alien plant taxa introduced in Italy and Europe has been recorded. The aim of this work is to investigate most of the Italian territory in order to verify whether this alarming trend is still underway. Specimen collections and/or observations of alien plants have been performed in as many as 12 Italian regions. All the collected specimens are stored in public or private herbaria. Taxa have been identified according to the literature from the countries of origin of the investigated taxa, while the nomenclature followed the current international references. Updates on 106 taxa are reported. In particular, among 117 new records, 89 are first records, 27 are changes to status and there is 1 extinction. Seven new taxa for Italian alien flora are reported, two of which are new to Europe. The administrative regions with the highest number of records are Calabria (48), Sardegna (17) and Sicilia (15). Five of the surveyed taxa, for the first time, have been considered invasive aliens to Italian territory. The unfrequent amount of original results provided by this work, over the simple importance of data itself, proves how floristic investigation, still today, represents one of the most effective tools in broadening the current knowledge about alien taxa and their dynamics.

Repurposing Waste from Aggressive Acacia Invaders to Promote Its Management in Large Invaded Areas in Southwestern Europe

“…Invasive Acacia spp. continue to expand rapidly [ 39 , 40 ]. Current control strategies for Acacia invasions are expensive and ineffective on a large scale and in the long term [ 11 ].…”

Use of the Drone for Cost-Effective Surveys In Natura 2000 Protected Areas: A Case Study on Monitoring Plant Diversity in Sicily (Italy)

“…The island's unique natural environment has garnered considerable interest from botanists due to its rich and diverse ecosystem. Consequently, there has been a continuous flow of new floristic records and descriptions of new species [26][27][28][29][30][31]. The main northern mountain range of the island, with the highest peak being Montagna Grande at 1374 m, is the Peloritani Mountains.…”

Prediction of Suitable Habitat of Alien Invasive Plant Ambrosia trifida in Northeast China under Various Climatic Scenarios

“…In recent years, the continuous changes of global climate have led to the increase of global temperature and the frequent occurrence of extreme weather, which have weakened the resistance of some ecosystems and directly or indirectly promoted the invasive ability of some alien plants, having serious impacts on local life, production and ecology [2,3]. Invasive alien species have threatened many countries and regions around the world [4,5], seriously affecting the production of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fisheries, as well as the stability of ecosystems, and it is one of the major drivers of current global biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation [6].Therefore, the prevention and control of invasive species has become the key work of biodiversity protection and agricultural green development in many countries and regions [7]. In recent years, China has become one of the countries suffering the most serious biological invasion in the world, and biological invasion has caused great harm to the domestic ecological environment and agricultural production, which continuously intensify with the development of climate change and international trade [8].…”