Combining local, landscape, and regional geographies to assess plant community vulnerability to invasion impact

作者：Inés Ibáñez, Laís Petri, David T. Barnett, Evelyn M. Beaury, Dana M. Blumenthal, Jeffrey D. Corbin, Jeffrey M. Diez, Jeffrey S. Dukes, Regan Early, Ian S. Pearse, Cascade J. B. Sorte, Montserrat Vilà, Bethany A. Bradley · 发表于：Ecological Applications · 年份：2023 · DOI：10.1002/eap.2821 · 被引用次数：12 · 研究领域：Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies、Plant and animal studies、Species Distribution and Climate Change

Invasive species science has focused heavily on the invasive agent. However, management to protect native species also requires a proactive approach focused on resident communities and the features affecting their vulnerability to invasion impacts. Vulnerability is likely the result of factors acting across spatial scales, from local to regional, and it is the combined effects of these factors that will determine the magnitude of vulnerability. Here, we introduce an analytical framework that quantifies the scale-dependent impact of biological invasions on native richness from the shape of the native species-area relationship (SAR). We leveraged newly available, biogeographically extensive vegetation data from the U.S. National Ecological Observatory Network to assess plant community vulnerability to invasion impact as a function of factors acting across scales. We analyzed more than 1000 SARs widely distributed across the USA along environmental gradients and under different levels of non-native plant cover. Decreases in native richness were consistently associated with non-native species cover, but native richness was compromised only at relatively high levels of non-native cover. After accounting for variation in baseline ecosystem diversity, net primary productivity, and human modification, ecoregions that were colder and wetter were most vulnerable to losses of native plant species at the local level, while warmer and wetter areas were most susceptible at the landscape le...