Ecological impacts of terrestrial invasive plants and vertebrates in Europe

Abstract

Ecological impacts of terrestrial invasive plants and vertebrates in Europe. The impact of introduced species is one of the least studied aspects of the ecology of biological invasions especially in Europe. Most studies have focussed on those species with an economic
impact. We have reviewed the literature on the effects of invasive plant and terrestrial vertebrate species on native species and receptive ecosystems in Europe. Invasive plants can interfere by competition or allelopathy with native plants. At the community level, the most studied impact is that of a decrease of species diversity and the local displacement of some of them. Alien plants can also interfere at high trophic levels  such  as  by  competition  for  pollinators.  At  the  ecosystem  level  they  can  change  nutrient  cycling  (i.e.  N  fixing  species),  soil  water availability and alter natural disturbance regimes. For invasive vertebrates, if they occupy the same ecological niche as a native species, one
species may interfere with the other. Usually this happens by competition for food or other resources, via direct predation or transfer of pathogens. They can also considerably alter the vegetation structure and succession.