Do Landscape Structure and Socio-Economic Variables Explain the Solidago Invasion?

Abstract

Biological invasions are considered a major threat to biodiversity on a global scale. In this study, we examined the effect of landscape structure and socioeconomic variables on the invasion pattern of alien Solidago species. Field data were collected in a set of 309 sampling plots, regularly placed on the intersecting lines of a 10 × 10-km grid, in south-western Poland (Silesia, Central Europe). Landscape characteristics and average values of socio-economic variables, such as human population density and total income per capita, were calculated. To examine the effect of landscape structure across different spatial extents, the landscape characteristics were analysed for three different buffers (radius: 500 m, 2 km and 5 km). A model explaining the pattern of the invasion was developed using a univariate, binary classification (decision) tree. The results show that both landscape structure and density of human population explain the spatial pattern of the invasion by alien Solidago species. The pattern was mostly shaped by the presence of unsuitable (forests) and suitable (roadsides) habitats for Solidago. The influence of percentage forest cover and road length was the strongest at the small spatial extent (radius = 500 m). The sum of linear elements length, percentage of urban areas and human population density calculated at the large extent (radius = 5 km) significantly improved the model. However, the predictive ability of these variables was less accurate. The model can be used by local authorities and land managers for modelling/predicting the hazards of invasion and elaborating a landscapelevel system of Solidago control.

Is phenotypic plasticity an explanation for the invasiveness of goldenrods (SolidagoandEuthamia) in Europe?

“…The most invasive among the studied taxa ( S. canadensis and S. gigantea ) exhibited rather moderate levels of phenotypic plasticity while producing high amounts of biomass. It should be noted that the nitrogen content of the different substrates was too low to induce growth in the examined plants; however, the results of field studies have shown that the difference in nitrogen content ranging from 0.55 to 4.69 g/kg was positively correlated with ramet height in S. gigantea (Szymura et al, ; M. Szymura, 2007). These results suggest that the two species can be considered as a “Jack of all traits and master of some” type.…”

“…By using different substrates, we obtained three levels of fertility: high (horticultural), moderate (local soil) and poor (mixture of local soil with sand and gravel). The range of chemical properties of the substrates corresponded to the soils on which goldenrods were found in the fields of central Europe (Szymura et al, ; Szymura & Szymura, ); the pH was similar among all three substrates. The substrate properties are detailed in Table .…”

“…Until now, E. graminifolia had a limited range, but it was a strong competitor within that range. Any limitations appear to be the result of restricted long‐range dispersal (Szymura et al, ; Szymura & Szymura, ). These results do not suggest that E. graminifolia differs from S. canadensis , a widespread species, with respect to morphological plasticity.…”

“…For soil composition, S. canadensis and S. gigantea are associated with neutral soils, and E. graminifolia is highly abundant on acidic, clayrich soils (Abrahamson, Dobley, Houseknecht, & Pecone, 2005;Weber, 2000;Weber & Jakobs, 2005). In Europe, S. canadensis, S. gigantea and E. graminifolia have a relatively wide niche with regard to soil properties (Szymura & Szymura, 2013;Szymura, Szymura, & Świerszcz, 2016;Weber & Jakobs, 2005); however, different soils produce plants with different heights and different lengths and widths of their inflorescences (Szymura & Szymura, 2013;Weber & Jakobs, 2005), which can be related to both local adaptation and phenotypic plasticity. The results of some studies have revealed the significant effect of phenotypic plasticity in S. gigantea and S. canadensis.…”

Modeling the fish community population dynamics and forecasting the eradication success of an exotic fish from an alpine stream

“…Although a global unifying theory is still lacking, several modeling approaches have proved to be useful to predict the distribution of invasive species (reviewed by Higgins and Richardson, 1996;Gallien et al, 2010;Hui et al, 2011). Some attempts have been made to predict the 'invasiveness' of organisms, as well as the invasibility of ecosystems (Barrat-Segretain et al, 2002;Hovick et al, 2012;Szymura et al, 2016). General concepts from community ecology can also be used for invasive species, and their distributions can be predicted, for example, using empirical habitat suitability models or by niche modeling based on species attributes (Thuiller et al, 2005;Buisson et al, 2008;Sharma et al, 2011;Marras et al, 2015).…”