scholarly journals Exploring Temporal Trends of Plant Invasion in Mediterranean Coastal Dunes

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (24) ◽  
pp. 13946
Author(s):  
Silvia Cascone ◽  
Marta Gaia Sperandii ◽  
Luigi Cao Pinna ◽  
Flavio Marzialetti ◽  
Maria Laura Carranza ◽  
...  

Alien plants represent a significant threat to species diversity and composition in natural habitats. Nevertheless, little is known about the dynamic of the invasion process and how its effects on native species change over time. In this study, we explored vegetation changes that occurred in invaded coastal dune habitats over the last 10–15 years (2005–2020), particularly addressing impacts on alien and diagnostic species. To monitor temporal trends, we used data resulting from a revisitation study. After detecting overall changes in alien species occurrence and cover over time, 127 total plots were grouped into plots experiencing colonization, loss, or persistence of alien species. For these three categories, we compared historical and resurveyed plots to quantify changes in native species composition (using the Jaccard dissimilarity index) and to measure variations in diagnostic species cover. The number of alien species doubled over time (from 6 to 12) and two species, Yucca gloriosa and Agave americana, strongly increased their cover (+5.3% and +11.4%, respectively). Furthermore, plots newly invaded appeared to record the greatest changes in both native and diagnostic species. Our results suggest the need for regular monitoring actions to better understand invasion processes over time and to implement effective management strategies in invaded coastal dune habitats.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuan Liu ◽  
Jason R Rohr ◽  
Xianping Li ◽  
Teng Deng ◽  
Wenhao Li ◽  
...  

Abstract Understanding how alien species assemble is crucial for predicting changes to community structure caused by biological invasions and for directing management strategies for alien species, but patterns and drivers of alien species assemblages remain poorly understood relative to native species. Climate has been suggested as a crucial filter of invasion-driven homogenization of biodiversity. However, it remains unclear which climatic factors drive the assemblage of alien species. Here, we compiled global data at both grid scale (2,653 native and 2,806 current grids with a resolution of 2° × 2°) and administrative scale (271 native and 297 current nations and sub-nations) on the distributions of 361 alien amphibians and reptiles (herpetofauna), the most threatened vertebrate group on the planet. We found that geographical distance, a proxy for natural dispersal barriers, was the dominant variable contributing to alien herpetofaunal assemblage in native ranges. In contrast, climatic factors explained more unique variation in alien herpetofaunal assemblage after than before invasions. This pattern was driven by extremely high temperatures and precipitation seasonality, 2 hallmarks of global climate change, and bilateral trade which can account for the alien assemblage after invasions. Our results indicated that human-assisted species introductions combined with climate change may accelerate the reorganization of global species distributions.


PeerJ ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. e1559 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pawel Wasowicz

The highlands and mountains of Iceland are one of the largest remaining wilderness areas in Europe. This study aimed to provide comprehensive and up-to-date data on non-native plant species in these areas and to answer the following questions: (1) How many non-native vascular plant species inhabit highland and mountainous environments in Iceland? (2) Do temporal trends in the immigration of alien species to Iceland differ between highland and lowland areas? (3) Does the incidence of alien species in the disturbed and undisturbed areas within Icelandic highlands differ? (4) Does the spread of non-native species in Iceland proceed from lowlands to highlands? and (5) Can we detect hot-spots in the distribution of non-native taxa within the highlands? Overall, 16 non-native vascular plant species were detected, including 11 casuals and 5 naturalized taxa (1 invasive). Results showed that temporal trends in alien species immigration to highland and lowland areas are similar, but it is clear that the process of colonization of highland areas is still in its initial phase. Non-native plants tended to occur close to man-made infrastructure and buildings including huts, shelters, roads etc. Analysis of spatio-temporal patterns showed that the spread within highland areas is a second step in non-native plant colonization in Iceland. Several statically significant hot spots of alien plant occurrences were identified using the Getis-Ord Gi* statistic and these were linked to human disturbance. This research suggests that human-mediated dispersal is the main driving force increasing the risk of invasion in Iceland’s highlands and mountain areas.


Author(s):  
Marija Milanović ◽  
Ingolf Kühn ◽  
Petr Pyšek ◽  
Sonja Knapp

AbstractAlien species in urban areas have a large effect on overall species diversity. A suitable metric of flora’s response to environmental change is functional diversity (FD) that refers to the multivariate space of species’ trait compositions, reflecting their ecological niches. We studied how FD changed over 320 years of urbanization in the city of Halle (Saale), Germany. Selected functional traits (related to stress-tolerance, reproduction, competitiveness and phenology) were examined for the difference in FD between native and alien plant species, the latter specifically for archaeophytes, neophytes and invasive species. Functional diversity for each trait was calculated using Rao’s Q index followed by a linear model to test for changes in Rao’s Q over time between the groups. Over the 320 years, overall FD remained constant despite species turnover, but FD significantly increased for neophytes and invasive species compared to native species. Plant height was the only trait showing increase in FD as main effect, while for the other traits examined FD decreased over time. Considering invasive species separately, the majority of traits exhibit a significant increase in FD except for seed mass where it decreased. Finally, FD of multiple functional traits combined decreased over time. This can be due to homogenization of functional trait between native and alien species, as a consequence of habitats becoming more similar and subsequent habitat filtering. Our results demonstrate that during the last three centuries, urbanization influenced plant FD in various ways and may contribute to future uniformity of urban floras and greater invasiveness.


2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 261-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irena Giełwanowska ◽  
Wioleta Kellmann−Sopyła

AbstractThe embryology of two species, Deschampsia antarctica, a native species, and Poa annua, an alien species in the Antarctic we studied. Flowering buds of plants growing in their natural habitats on King George Island and generative tissues of both plant species grown in a greenhouse were analyzed. Adaptations to autogamy and anemogamy were observed in the flower anatomy of both species. The microsporangia of the evaluated grasses produce a small number of three−celled pollen grains. Numerous pollen grains do not leave the microsporangium and germinate in the thecae. Deschampsia antarctica and P. annua plants harvested in Antarctica developed a particularly small number of microspores in pollen chambers. In D. antarctica, male gametophytes were produced at a faster rate: generative cells in pollen did not become detached from the wall of the pollen grain, they were not embedded in the cytoplasm of vegetative cells, and they divided into two sperm cells situated close to the wall. The monosporous Polygonum type of embryo sac development was observed in the studied species. The egg apparatus had typical polarization, and the filiform apparatus did not develop in synergids. Large antipodals with polyploidal nuclei were formed in the embryo sacs of D. antarctica and P. annua. Poa annua was characterized by numerous antipodal cells which formed antipodal tissue in the chalazal region of the embryo sac. Three distinct antipodals with atypical, lateral position in the vicinity of the egg apparatus were observed in D. antarctica. The diaspores of the investigated grass species were characterized by small size, low weight and species-specific primary and secondary sculpture of the testa and caryopsis coat.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip H. Smith

Over 460 non-native (alien) taxa were recorded in a Sefton Coast sand-dune vascular plant inventory, their proportion in the flora increasing after 1999. Between 2005/06 and 2018, twice as many non-native as native plants were found. An analysis of occurrences of native and non-native taxa in six major habitat types found that a higher proportion of aliens was present in scrub/woodland and disturbed ground, while native plants had more occurrences in fixed dunes/dune grasslands, dune heath and wetlands. No differences between the two groups were detected for strandline/shingle and embryo/mobile dune habitats. Twenty-four non-native and 14 native taxa showed invasive characteristics in the duneland. The former included especially Hippophae rhamnoides and Rosa rugosa, both constituting major threats to sand-dune biodiversity. Particularly invasive native plants were Arrhenatherum elatius, Betula spp., Salix cinerea, and Ulex europaea. The main findings accord with studies elsewhere in Britain and Europe showing recent increases of neophytes in semi-natural habitats and that both non-native and native species can have invasive traits. The open habitats of coastal dunes seem to be particularly susceptible to plant invasions.


NeoBiota ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 69 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
Katharina Lapin ◽  
Sven Bacher ◽  
Thomas Cech ◽  
Rok Damjanić ◽  
Franz Essl ◽  
...  

The prioritization of alien species according to the magnitude of their environmental impacts has become increasingly important for the management of invasive alien species. In this study, we applied the Environmental Impact Classification of Alien Taxa (EICAT) to classify alien taxa from three different taxonomic groups to facilitate the prioritisation of management actions for the threatened riparian forests of the Mura-Drava-Danube Biosphere Reserve, South East Europe. With local experts we collated a list of 198 alien species (115 plants, 45 insects, and 38 fungi) with populations reported in southeast European forest ecosystems and included them in the EICAT. We found impact reports for 114 species. Eleven of these species caused local extinctions of a native species, 35 led to a population decrease, 51 to a reduction in performance in at least one native species and for 17 alien species no effects on individual fitness of native species were detected. Fungi had significantly highest impact and were more likely to have information on their impacts reported. Competition and parasitism were the most important impact mechanisms of alien species. This study is, to our knowledge, the first application of EICAT to all known alien species of several taxonomic groups in a protected area. The impact rankings enabled to identify taxa that generally cause high impacts and to prioritize species for the management in protected areas according to their impact magnitudes. By following a standardized impact protocol, we identified several alien species causing high impacts that do not appear on any expert-based risk list, which are relevant for policymakers. Thus, we recommend that alien species be systematically screened to identify knowledge gaps and prioritize their management with respect to spatio-temporal trends in impact magnitudes.


Author(s):  
Gertrūde Gavrilova ◽  
Māris Laiviņš ◽  
Agnese Priede ◽  
Anda Medene

Alien flora in the Lake Engure Nature Park This paper describes the alien vascular plant flora in the Lake Engure Nature Park, one of the most species-richest and diverse areas in Latvia. The review was based on the floristic inventories conducted in 1983-1989 and a field survey carried out in 2010. In total, 68 alien species (7.6% of the vascular plant flora in the nature park) were recorded, of which four had established in the period between both surveys. 22 species were recognised as adventive species and 46 as escaped species. Most of the alien species area concentrated in coastal villages, around human settlements, roadsides, coastal dunes and along streams discharging in the Lake Engure, thus mostly in transformed habitats. They are absent in most of the natural and semi-natural habitats. In comparison to the overall situation in Latvia, the Lake Engure Nature Park area is relatively little affected by plant invasions, most probably because large areas of natural and semi-natural habitats remain, since high naturalness of vegetation plays a significant role as a natural barrier hindering alien invasions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 304-306
Author(s):  
J Iannuzzi ◽  
J H Leong ◽  
J Quan ◽  
J A King ◽  
J W Windsor ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Acute pancreatitis is a common disease with significant associated morbidity and mortality. Historically, acute pancreatitis has been considered a disease with multiple etiologies and risk factors but is driven by alcohol and biliary disease. Multiple studies have shown that the incidence of acute pancreatitis is increasing globally among both adults and children. Aims The purpose of this study was to assess temporal trends in incidence of acute pancreatitis globally. Methods We performed a systematic literature search to identify population-based studies reporting the annual incidence of acute pancreatitis. Abstracts were independently assessed in duplicate to identify applicable papers for full-text review and data extraction. Joinpoint temporal trend analyses were performed to calculate the average annual percent change (AAPC) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). The AAPCs were pooled in a meta-analysis to capture the overall and regional trends in acute pancreatitis incidence over time. Temporal data were summarized in a static map and an interactive, web-based map to illustrate global differences. Results Forty-five studies reported the temporal incidence of acute pancreatitis (static map provided, online interactive map: https://kaplan-acute-pancreatitis-ucalgary.hub.arcgis.com/). The incidence of acute pancreatitis has increased from 1961 to 2016 (AAPC = 2.89%; 95% CI: 2.26, 3.52; n=41). Increasing incidence was observed in North America (AAPC = 2.71%; 95% CI: 1.93, 3.50; n=10) and Europe (AAPC = 2.79%; 95% CI: 1.95, 3.63; n=24). The incidence of acute pancreatitis was stable in Asia (AAPC = −0.28%; 95% CI: −5.03, 4.47; n=2). Conclusions This meta-analysis provides a comprehensive overview of the global incidence of acute pancreatitis over the last five decades and demonstrates a steadily rising incidence over time in most countries of the Western world. More studies are needed to better define the changing incidence of acute pancreatitis in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Funding Agencies None


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Sjöland ◽  
Jonas Silverdal ◽  
Entela Bollano ◽  
Aldina Pivodic ◽  
Ulf Dahlström ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Temporal trends in clinical composition and outcome in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) are largely unknown, despite considerable advances in heart failure management. We set out to study clinical characteristics and prognosis over time in DCM in Sweden during 2003–2015. Methods DCM patients (n = 7873) from the Swedish Heart Failure Registry were divided into three calendar periods of inclusion, 2003–2007 (Period 1, n = 2029), 2008–2011 (Period 2, n = 3363), 2012–2015 (Period 3, n = 2481). The primary outcome was the composite of all-cause death, transplantation and hospitalization during 1 year after inclusion into the registry. Results Over the three calendar periods patients were older (p = 0.022), the proportion of females increased (mean 22.5%, 26.4%, 27.6%, p = 0.0001), left ventricular ejection fraction was higher (p = 0.0014), and symptoms by New York Heart Association less severe (p < 0.0001). Device (implantable cardioverter defibrillator and/or cardiac resynchronization) therapy increased by 30% over time (mean 11.6%, 12.3%, 15.1%, p < 0.0001). The event rates for mortality, and hospitalization were consistently decreasing over calendar periods (p < 0.0001 for all), whereas transplantation rate was stable. More advanced physical symptoms correlated with an increased risk of a composite outcome over time (p = 0.0043). Conclusions From 2003 until 2015, we observed declining mortality and hospitalizations in DCM, paralleled by a continuous change in both demographic profile and therapy in the DCM population in Sweden, towards a less affected phenotype.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (05) ◽  
pp. 769-784
Author(s):  
Ipek Ensari ◽  
Adrienne Pichon ◽  
Sharon Lipsky-Gorman ◽  
Suzanne Bakken ◽  
Noémie Elhadad

Abstract Background Self-tracking through mobile health technology can augment the electronic health record (EHR) as an additional data source by providing direct patient input. This can be particularly useful in the context of enigmatic diseases and further promote patient engagement. Objectives This study aimed to investigate the additional information that can be gained through direct patient input on poorly understood diseases, beyond what is already documented in the EHR. Methods This was an observational study including two samples with a clinically confirmed endometriosis diagnosis. We analyzed data from 6,925 women with endometriosis using a research app for tracking endometriosis to assess prevalence of self-reported pain problems, between- and within-person variability in pain over time, endometriosis-affected tasks of daily function, and self-management strategies. We analyzed data from 4,389 patients identified through a large metropolitan hospital EHR to compare pain problems with the self-tracking app and to identify unique data elements that can be contributed via patient self-tracking. Results Pelvic pain was the most prevalent problem in the self-tracking sample (57.3%), followed by gastrointestinal-related (55.9%) and lower back (49.2%) pain. Unique problems that were captured by self-tracking included pain in ovaries (43.7%) and uterus (37.2%). Pain experience was highly variable both across and within participants over time. Within-person variation accounted for 58% of the total variance in pain scores, and was large in magnitude, based on the ratio of within- to between-person variability (0.92) and the intraclass correlation (0.42). Work was the most affected daily function task (49%), and there was significant within- and between-person variability in self-management effectiveness. Prevalence rates in the EHR were significantly lower, with abdominal pain being the most prevalent (36.5%). Conclusion For enigmatic diseases, patient self-tracking as an additional data source complementary to EHR can enable learning from the patient to more accurately and comprehensively evaluate patient health history and status.


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