Search results for " alien"

Le specie alloctone invasive in Sicilia: caratterizzazione del fenomeno, strategie di colonizzazione e possibili strategie di contrasto

2014

Inventory of the non‐native flora of Italy

2009

In this paper we present a comprehensive inventory of the non‐native vascular flora of Italy, which was produced within the project “A survey of the Italian non‐native flora”, funded by the Italian Ministry for the Environment. Previously published floristic accounts were the main source of information. Historical records were critically revised and integrated with recent literature, data from herbaria and some unpublished information, so as to obtain a complete, up‐to‐date catalogue of the non‐native vascular plant species that occur spontaneously in Italy. The inventory lists 1023 non‐native species and subspecies, which account for 13.4% of all the Italian flora. The Italian non‐native f…

Vegetation dynamics within afforested coastal areas: regeneration by native species or invasion by alien species?

2017

During the last century, massive reforestation projects along the dunes of the southern Sicily have been carried out. Such interventions, far from being in line with the current trends of close-to-nature silviculture, are, however, particularly interesting to assess the vegetation dynamics in afforestation areas. Furthermore, these kind of interventions may determine two opposite effects, that is renaturalization by native woody species or invasion by alien species. Acacia spp. are among the most widespread and prominent invaders within Mediterranean-climate areas, where they have already shown the capability to deeply change the characters and the functioning of native ecosystems. For inst…

Alien flora of Europe: Species diversity, temporal trends, geographical patterns and research needs

2008

International audience; The paper provides the first estimate of the composition and structure of alien plants occurring in the wild in the European continent, based on the results of the DAISIE project (2004–2008), funded by the 6th Framework Programme of the European Union and aimed at “creating an inventory of invasive species that threaten European terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments”. The plant section of the DAISIE database is based on national checklists from 48 European countries/regions and Israel; for many of them the data were compiled during the project and for some countries DAISIE collected the first comprehensive checklists of alien species, based on primary data …

The impact of alien vascular plants in the aquatic habitats of a mediterranean island: preliminary data and observations in Sicily

2016

As is well known, invasive alien species pose a major global threat to the conservation of biodiversity, causing the extinction of native species and modifying ecosystem functions: this is true also for aquatic habitats, particularly susceptible to invasion due to usually high disturbance regimes and easy dispersal of propagules. The island of Sicily is one of the main hotspots of plant biodiversity, in the center of the Mediterranean basin; it hosts different types of freshwater habitats, both lentic (coastal wetlands, saltworks, temporary ponds, lakes, reservoirs) and lotic (springs, streams, permanent and seasonal rivers). As a first step of our analysis of the effects of the alien vascu…

Tree invasions in Italian forests

2022

Many forest tree species have been moved outside their native range to provide goods and services elsewhere, but some of them have become invasive, causing negative impacts on biodiversity and human activities. The assessment and knowledge on the degree and scale to which forest ecosystems are invaded by non-native trees is of paramount importance for tailored policies and strategies aiming at forest conservation. By analyzing main databases and literature and applying a four-level scale of invasion (not currently invaded and with low invasibility; potentially invasible; moderately invaded; massively invaded), we assessed the current and potential occurrence of twenty-five invasive non-nati…

A new synonym and a new combination in Stipa aliena Keng (Poaceae: Stipa sect. Regelia)

2015

Stipa section Regelia comprises three species occurring in mountainous areas of Central Asia. One of them, S. smithii , was described by Martinovský in 1970, but the taxon has been overlooked in later taxonomical studies. The species was described with two varieties, var. smithii and var. macrocarpa . As a result of our taxonomical studies, we find the typical variety of the taxon to be conspecific with Stipa aliena , and propose that the second one be recognized as Stipa aliena var. macrocarpa comb. nov. Remarks on species belonging to section Regelia and micromorphological patterns of their lemma morphologies are discussed. A key to species close to S. aliena is provided.

Invasive Alien Plants in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Review and Synthesis of Their Insecticidal Activities

2021

Despite the cornucopia of agricultural, economic and ecological ramifications of invasive alien plant species (IAPs) in sub-Saharan Africa, studies on their potential use as bio-insecticides have not received adequate attention compared to the burgeoning plethora of literature on their use in ethnomedicine. In the current study, we review the existing, but scattered literature on the insecticidal activity of different parts of some IAPs; specifically those invasive in sub-Saharan Africa but with published literature from Africa and elsewhere. From our literature survey, we found that 69 studies from four continents (Africa, Asia, North America and South America) reported the insecticidal ac…

Citizens and scientists work together to monitor marine alien macrophytes

2018

The introduction of non-indigenous species (NIS) is an ongoing phenomenon which has been pointed out as a major threat to biodiversity at different levels. NIS may in time become invasive (Invasive Alien Species “IAS”) and may cause biodiversity loss and ecosystem service changes. The Mediterranean Sea is an important hotspot for marine NIS (ca. 1,000 such species recorded to date. To reduce the risk of future IAS introduction and to better understand their invasive potential and spread dynamics, monitoring and surveillance plans are required. The creation of permanent alarm systems and public awareness campaigns are crucial for reducing the risk of IAS introduction. Since intensive monitor…

Principi di spontaneizzazione di Diospyros kaki (Ebenaceae) in Sicilia

2013

A spontaneous group of plants of Diospyros kaki is reported in a rural area near Menfi, in the province of Agrigento. This is the first record of naturalization of this Asian species – after long time cultivated in various countries of the Mediterranean Basin - observed in Italy.