Mapping actual distribution of invasive species siam weed and its abundance across biogeographical zones in Benin (West Africa)

Abstract

Background: Invasive weeds pose a serious threat to agricultural systems worldwide and the management of such species requires information on their distribution. Objective: This research work aimed at assessing the evolution in the distribution of Siaw weed across biogeographical zones in Benin as first step toward the development of management policy and to give insight into the threat it poses to agriculture and biodiversity. Methods: Field and roadside surveys were carried out to record the presence of the species. Geographical coordinates were collected and incorporated in GIS software to map the distribution of the plant. Abundance data were submitted to analysis of variance to compare infestation level across biogeographical zones, and correlation of the species distribution with environmental factors was examined. Results:The extent of occurrence of the species has increased and fell within latitudes 6°30' and just beyond 10° North and range from about 0 m to 438 m in elevation, covering the entire area from south to center, and in part the north of the country. This weed is significantly more abundant in sudano-guinean zone (7.28 ± 0.18) than guinean zone (4.72 ± 0.20) and sudanian zone (3.5 ± 0.5). The species distribution is significantly correlated to the major climate variables and soil pH. Conclusion:The distribution of Siam weed mapped here shows progress in its occurrence points. Further studies are needed to better investigate the importance of soil and climate variables in its distribution and the vulnerability of the center zone ecosystems.

Ecological insights and environmental threats of invasive alien plantChromolaena odorata: Prospects for sustainable management

“…Interaction of ecological mechanisms with the climate change can further exacerbate the invasive spread of C. odorata (Adhikari et al, 2023;Saranya et al, 2021). During their C. odorata mapping in West African region Dandjlessa et al (2021) predicted the role of soil pH and climatic variables in its rapid range expansion (Dandjlessa et al, 2021). In this context, microcosm studies were performed to elucidate the interactions of C. odorata with three native plants under the effect of warming and treatment with variable nutrient fluxes (Shi et al, 2022).…”

Invasive rodent dynamics in a highly connected African harbour

“…Benin has a population of 13.3 million, similar to Greece, Belgium, Portugal or Sweden (World Bank, 2023). Biological invasions present challenges similar to those in other countries and continents, as described by research publications available on the Internet (Dandjlessa et al, 2021;Dessouassi et al, 2019;Dossou et al, 2020;Etougbétché et al, 2020;Hofsvang et al, 2014;Sinasson et al, 2017). There are no reasons to think this research should not be as relevant as any other from European or American countries.…”

Ecological Niche Modeling of Invasive Macrophyte (Urochloa subquadripara) and Co-Occurrence with South American Natives

“…Some approaches, such as species distribution models (SDMs), can be adopted for ecological niche projection considering the climate [35,36]. SDMs allow for predicting the potential distribution of a species using occurrence and climate data [37], being an important tool in preventing the invasion of exotic species in new environments.…”