Alien plants in checklists and floras: towards better communication between taxonomists and ecologists

The number of studies dealing with plant invasions is increasing rapidly, but the accumulating body of knowledge has unfortunately also spawned increasing confusion about terminology. Invasions are a global phenomenon and comparison of geographically distant regions and their introduced biota is a crucially important methodological approach for elucidation of the determinants of invasiveness and invasibility. Comparative studies of alien floras provide substantial new insights to our understanding of general patterns of plant invasions. Such studies, using information in previously published floras and checklists, are fundamentally dependent on the quality of the assessment of particular species with respect to their taxonomic identity, time of immigration and invasion status. Three crucial decisions should be made when defining the status of a plant species in a given region: (1) whether the taxon is native or alien to that region (origin status); (2) what is its position in the invasion process, i.e., when was it introduced (residence status); and (3) what is the degree of its naturalization and possible invasion (invasion status). Standard floras differ hugely in their treatment of non-native species and those with appropriate categorization of alien species according to their status are rather rare. The present paper suggests definitions of terms associated with plant invasions and places these into the context of floras. Recommendations are outlined on how to deal with the issue of plant invasions in standard floras with the aim of contributing to a better understanding between taxonomists and ecologists and allowing more detailed comparative analyses of alien floras of various regions of the world.

[1]  K. Schierenbeck,et al.  Hybridization as a stimulus for the evolution of invasiveness in plants? , 2006, Euphytica.

[2]  M. Williamson,et al.  Invaders, weeds and the risk from genetically manipulated organisms , 1993, Experientia.

[3]  F. Schroeder,et al.  Zur klassifizierung der Anthropochoren , 1968, Vegetatio.

[4]  Charles C. Elton,et al.  The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants , 2004, Biodiversity & Conservation.

[5]  B. Meatyard.  New Atlas of the British and Irish Flora: By C.D. Preston, D.A. Pearman and T.D. Dines. Published by Oxford University Press, 2002. ISBN 0 19 851067 5 (Hardback with CD). 912 pages. Price £99.95 , 2003 .

[6]  W. Kress,et al.  A Checklist of the Trees, Shrubs, Herbs, and Climbers of Myanmar , 2003 .

[7]  Petr Pyšek,et al.  Czech alien flora and the historical pattern of its formation: what came first to Central Europe? , 2003, Oecologia.

[8]  P. Pyšek.  How reliable are data on alien species in Flora Europaea ? , 2003 .

[9]  ek,et al.  How reliable are data on alien species in Flora Europaea , 2003 .

[10]  James C. Space,et al.  Report to the Republic of Palau on Invasive Plant Species of Environmental Concern , 2003 .

[11]  S. Chaw,et al.  Naturalized Fabaceae (Leguminosae) species in Taiwan: the first approximation. , 2003 .

[12]  H. Ballard,et al.  Inferring nativity and biogeographic affinities of central and marginal populations of Froelichia floridana (Amaranthaceae) from Inter-Simple Sequence Repeat (ISSR) markers1 , 2002 .

[13]  R. P. Randall,et al.  A Global Compendium of Weeds , 2002 .

[14]  T. Kučera,et al.  Patterns of invasion in temperate nature reserves , 2002 .

[15]  K. Saltonstall,et al.  Cryptic invasion by a non-native genotype of the common reed, Phragmites australis, into North America , 2002, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

[16]  David Pimentel,et al.  Alien plants in the British Isles. , 2002 .

[17]  Petr Pyšek,et al.  Catalogue of alien plants of the Czech Republic (3rd edition) , 2022, Preslia.

[18]  Jessica Gurevitch,et al.  The ecology of plants , 2002 .

[19]  M. Rejmánek.  Cape plants: a conspectus of the Cape flora of South Africa , 2001 .

[20]  G. MacDonald.  Biogeography: Introduction to Space, Time, and Life , 2001 .

[21]  C. Daehler.  Darwin's Naturalization Hypothesis Revisited , 2001, The American Naturalist.

[22]  C. Daehler.  Two ways to be an invader, but one is more suitable for ecology , 2001 .

[23]  Mark A. Davis,et al.  Invasion Terminology: Should ecologists define their terms differently than others? No, not if we want to be of any help! , 2001 .

[24]  J. Mcneely.  Global strategy on invasive alien species , 2001 .

[25]  M. Nee,et al.  Checklist of the Vascular Plants of Belize: With Common Names and Uses , 2000 .

[26]  M. Rejmánek.  Invasive plants: approaches and predictions , 2000 .

[27]  C. J. West,et al.  Naturalization and invasion of alien plants: concepts and definitions , 2000 .

[28]  M. Nee,et al.  Checklist of the vascular plants of Belize. , 2000 .

[29]  Harold A. Mooney,et al.  Invasive species in a changing world , 2000 .

[30]  P. Goldblatt,et al.  Cape plants: A conspectus of the Cape flora of South Africa , 2000 .

[31]  Mark A. Davis,et al.  Eight Ways to be a Colonizer; Two Ways to be an Invader. , 2000 .

[32]  S. Waldren,et al.  The non-native vascular plants of Henderson Island, South Central Pacific Ocean , 1999 .

[33]  W. M. Lonsdale,et al.  GLOBAL PATTERNS OF PLANT INVASIONS AND THE CONCEPT OF INVASIBILITY , 1999 .

[34]  B. J. Goodwin,et al.  Predicting Invasiveness of Plant Species Based on Biological Information , 1999 .

[35]  H. Mooney.  A global strategy for dealing with alien invasive species , 1999 .

[36]  L. V. Raamsdonk,et al.  Plant Evolution in man-made Habitats , 1999 .

[37]  Petr Pyšek,et al.  Is there a taxonomic pattern to plant invasions , 1998 .

[38]  C. Daehler.  The taxonomic distribution of invasive angiosperm plants: Ecological insights and comparison to agricultural weeds , 1998 .

[39]  B. Pavlik,et al.  Reintroduction of Rare Plants: Genetics, Demography, and the Role of Ex Situ Conservation Methods , 1998 .

[40]  E. Weber.  The alien flora of Europe: a taxonomic and biogeographic review , 1997 .

[41]  John M. Randall.  Defining Weeds of Natural Areas , 1997 .

[42]  T. B. Ryves,et al.  Alien grasses of the British Isles. , 1998 .

[43]  M. Crawley,et al.  Comparative ecology of the native and alien floras of the British Isles , 1996 .

[44]  M. Rejmánek.  Species Richness and Resistance to Invasions , 1996 .

[45]  A. Elvebakk,et al.  A catalogue of Svalbard plants, fungi, algae and cyanobacteria. Part 2. Bryophytes , 1996 .

[46]  R. Elven,et al.  A catalogue of Svalbard plants, fungi, algae, and cyanobacteria. Part 1. Vascular plants , 1996 .

[47]  S. Waldren,et al.  The flora of the Pitcairn Islands: a review , 1995 .

[48]  Gary L. Wade,et al.  Standards for the writing of floras , 1995 .

[49]  C. Marticorena,et al.  Manual de las malezas que crecen en Chile , 1995 .

[50]  P. Pyšek,et al.  Recent trends in studies on plant invasions (1974-1993). , 1995 .

[51]  M. Rejmánek.  What makes a species invasive , 1995 .

[52]  Steven N. Handel,et al.  A century of change in the Staten Island flora: Ecological correlates of species losses and invasions' , 1994 .

[53]  M. C. Foster,et al.  Alien plants of the British Isles: a provisional catalogue of vascular plants (excluding grasses). , 1994 .

[54]  Clifford W. Smith,et al.  Alien Plant Invasions in Native Ecosystems of Hawaii: Management and Research , 1993 .

[55]  R. Abbott,et al.  Plant invasions, interspecific hybridization and the evolution of new plant taxa. , 1992, Trends in ecology & evolution.

[56]  C. Stace.  New Flora Of The British Isles , 1998 .

[57]  J. Wacquant.  Biogeographical and physiological aspects of the invasion by Dittrichia (ex-Inula) viscosa W. Greuter, a ruderal species in the Mediterranean Basin , 1990 .

[58]  J. Kornás.  Plant invasions in Central Europe: historical and ecological aspects , 1990 .

[59]  F. Castri.  On invading species and invaded ecosystems: the interplay of historical chance and biological necessity , 1990 .

[60]  F. Castri,et al.  Biological Invasions: A Global Perspective , 1989 .

[61]  James A. Drake,et al.  Biological invasions : a global perspective , 1989 .

[62]  S. Australian.  THE NATURALISED FLORA OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA 1. THE DOCUMENTATION OF ITS DEVELOPMENT , 1987 .

[63]  P. Smith.  Native or introduced? Problems in the taxonomy and plant geography of some widely introduced annual brome-grasses , 1986 .

[64]  D. Frodin.  Guide to Standard Floras of the World , 1985 .

[65]  D. A. Webb.  What are the criteria for presuming native status , 1985 .

[66]  J. Cullen,et al.  THE EUROPEAN GARDEN FLORA , 1984 .

[67]  V. Muhlenbach.  Contributions to the Synanthropic (Adventive) Flora of the Railroads in St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.A , 1979 .

[68]  J. Fournet.  Flore illustrée des phanérogames de Guadeloupe et de Martinique , 1978 .

[69]  E. Oberdorfer.  Pflanzensoziologische Excursionsflora@@@Pflanzensoziologische Exkursionsflora fur Suddeutschland und die angrenzenden Gebiete , 1971 .

[70]  M. Zohary.  Plant Life of Palestine: Israel and Jordan , 1962 .

[71]  M. Zohary,et al.  Plant Life in Palestine , 1962 .

[72]  A. R. Clapham,et al.  Flora of the British Isles , 1962 .

[73]  H. Godwin,et al.  The History of the British Flora. , 1957 .

[74]  E. Oberdorfer.  Pflanzensoziologische Exkursionsflora für Süddeutschland und die angrenzenden Gebiete , 1951 .

[75]  J. Braun-Blanquet,et al.  Vocabulaire de sociologie végétale , 1922 .