Determination Of Priority Species For Invasive Plant Management In Wetlands Of Wasur National Park Merauke
<p>Threats on biodiversity in a conservation area can originated from outside or inside the area. One of the outsiders that rarely noticeable is invasion of exotic species, which usually alters the stability of natural processes within the area. Wasur National Park has some wetland ecosystems that overcome the issues of deterioration in function and benefits due to exotic plant invasion in recent days. This research was carried out to determine priority species that need immediately managements in Wasur National Park. Field survey and inventory followed by scoring and evaluation methods using Weed Risk Assessment by Exotic Species Ranking System were taken in this research to obtain the priority species. The scoring and ranking steps placed encountered invasive plant species into four categories of management priority based on Significance of Impact and the Feasibility of Control. The result identified 49 species of invasive plants from three wetlands in Wasur National Park, which 75% (or 36 species) of them are species of Priority 3 (lesser threat and easy to control), 4 species of Priority 4 (lesser threat – hard to control) and at least 9 species of Priority 2 (serious threat-hard to control). Priority 2 species consist of <em>Carex</em> sp., <em>Eleocharis indica</em> (Lour.) Druce, <em>Hanguana malayana</em> (Jack.) Merr., <em>Imperata cylindrica</em> (L.) Beauv., <em>Ludwigia oktovalvis</em> (Jacq.) Raven, <em>Melaleuca cajuputi</em> Powell, <em>M. leucadendron</em> (Linn.), <em>Paspalum</em> <em>conjugatum</em> P. J. Bergius, and <em>Stachytareta jamaicensis</em> (L.). These invasive plants need to be managed properly and thoroughly further.</p>