Impacts of Non-native Trees: Basic and Applied Aspects
A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Ecology and Management".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2019)
Special Issue Editor
Interests: biological invasions; ecosystem processes; vegetation structure and function; plant–soil interactions; ecosystem services
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Non-native trees have been widely planted worldwide to provide a wide variety of ecosystem services, ranging from natural resources (e.g., timber, tannins, or cork) to amenities or ornamental values. However, some of these species may have undesired effects in the introduced ecosystems (e.g., reduction of local biodiversity, alteration of ecosystem processes, changes in the community structure). Moreover, some of these impacts may involve important economic losses (e.g., those associated with reduced water reserves) or direct harms on people (e.g., production of allergenic pollen or increased fire risk). Although impacts are often associated with invasive species, some of them may appear at low densities (i.e. when the non-native species is not yet considered as invasive). Predicting impacts by non-native trees is challenged by the strong context-dependency of impacts, by the scarce information on the impact–abundance relations, by the biased selection of a few high-impact trees for scientific studies, or by the time lags that may hide the invasive potential.
We encourage studies from different fields, providing empirical information on the impacts of non-native trees on the structure and function of ecosystems or their components, as well as on ecosystem services. We also encourage studies contributing to improved risk assessment and the efficient management of non-native trees. Original studies and reviews are both welcome.
Prof. Dr. Pilar Castro-Díez
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- non-native trees
- community structure
- ecosystem processes
- biodiversity
- ecosystem services
- fire risk
- time lags
- per-capita impact
- invasion gradients
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