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The perception of eight invasive alien plant species (IAPS) by 311 children and young people (10–24 years old) and their choice of management options were investigated, either with or without prior information about the IAPS given. In the first questionnaire, photographs of the IAPS (four terrestrial herbs, one tree and three aquatic plants) were presented, but their invasive status was not revealed. Participants characterized each plant by five opposing attributes, e.g. unwanted – wanted. In a consecutive second questionnaire, half of the participants were informed about the invasive character of the plants, the other half not. Both groups then evaluated various management options. Plants with attractive flowers were considered most beautiful and wanted. Moreover, if participants perceived an IAPS as familiar, they considered it native. Participants with information about the IAPS were more likely to choose containment or eradication and were also more able to justify their management decisions in a considerate manner. Participants without information were more likely to choose no intervention, especially in case of flowering forbs. The findings indicate that even a brief information about IAPS might help young people to make informed decisions when dealing with invasive species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Klasea quinquefolia (M.Bieb. ex Willd.) Greuter & Wagenitz is a perennial and rhizomatous herb native to the Russian Caucasus, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, and Asian Turkey. The natural habitats of the species are deciduous forests or open areas in hill/mountain areas. Outside the native range, the species is mainly known for its ethnobotanical and pharmaceutical uses but in recent years, it has been also recorded as an alien species in Austria. In this work, we reported the first occurrence of K. quinquefolia in Italy. The species was recorded in August 2023 in the Monza Park (Lombardy, N-Italy) in a mesophilous woodland dominated by Carpinus betulus. The new population was subdivided in 10 subpopulations distributed in habitat patches with surface areas ranging from 0.085 to 95,008 m2. The total population accounted almost 500 individuals with a flowering population size of about 350 individuals. Likely, the establishment of K. quinquefolia is linked to the presence of internationally frequented facilities that might have favoured its unintentional arrival (e.g. the Monza Racetrack) or to historical reasons of past introductions to Royal Gardens of the Monza Palace. Presently, it should be treated as a naturalized alien species in Italy even if its further spreading could be favoured by the species' habitat preference and climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biological invasions are a major threat to biodiversity and have particularly devastating impacts on island ecosystems. The New Caledonia archipelago is considered a biodiversity hotspot due to its diverse native flora. Javan rusa deer (Rusa timorensis) were introduced to New Caledonia in 1870 and the population consists of several hundred thousand individuals today. They directly threaten rare endemic species and affect the composition and structure of the vegetation. While a rusa deer management plan has identified ten priority areas for deer control operations, removing deer could be offset by the dispersal of animals back into the control areas. Here, we genotyped 628 rusa deer using 16 microsatellite markers to analyse the genetic structure of the animals in New Caledonia. We aimed to assess fine-scale genetic structure, to identify natural barriers to deer movement and to assess functional connectivity by optimising individual-based landscape resistance models. Our results suggested that rusa deer formed a single genetic population on the main New Caledonian island. The isolation-by-distance pattern suggested that female dispersal was limited, whereas males had larger dispersal distances. We assessed functional connectivity using different genetic distance metrics and all models performed poorly (mR2 ≤ 0.0043). Landscape features thus hardly affected deer movement. The characteristics of our results suggested that they were not an artefact of the colonisation history of the species. Achieving an effective reduction of deer population sizes in specific management areas will be difficult because of the deer's high dispersal capabilities and impossible without very substantial financial investment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

'Candidatus Phytoplasma ulmi' (Ca. P. ulmi) belongs to the ribosomal subgroup 16SrV-A and is associated with dieback, shoot proliferation and yellows disease on various Ulmus spp. Other plant species, such as Carpinus betulus and Prunus spp. have also been reported infected by the same pathogen. In 2021, in the frame of research activities focused on grapevine's Flavescence dorée (FD), one specimen of Orientus ishidae - an East Palearctic leafhopper that was identified as an alternative vector of FD phytoplasmas - was found harboring Ca. P. ulmi in southern Switzerland. No phytoplasmas were detected in plant samples taken in the same location. Orientus ishidae has already been reported to be able to acquire diverse phytoplasmas associated with other plant diseases, such as Peach X-disease. This is the first report of Ca. P. ulmi in Switzerland, as well as in O. ishidae. Ca. P. ulmi may potentially be present in the wild compartment of the Swiss Pre-alpine and Alpine range, but no dedicated survey has so far been conducted. In the case of O. ishidae, this finding highlights the broad affinity of such a species for the acquisition of several phytoplasmas. This calls for a further investigation regarding its potential role as a vector on various pathosystems of agronomic importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The North American oak lace bug (OLB), Corythucha arcuata, is an invasive species in Europe and a serious threat to oak‐dominated forests.Survival at low temperatures is one major factor determining the spread of invasive insects. Thus, we studied key traits, that is, cold‐tolerance strategy, supercooling points (SCP) and chilling‐related mortality, of overwintering adults to assess their potential to withstand harsh winters.Samples for SCP measurements were collected once a month from November 2020 until March 2021 at three different locations in Hungary; specimens for chilling experiments were sampled in November 2020, January 2021 and March 2021.SCPs of overwintering adults ranged from −29.68 to −7.49 °C, with only moderate variation among months; C. arcuata is a freeze‐avoidant species.Mortality rates of adults exposed to two sub‐zero temperatures above the SCP (−3 and −5 °C) for 1, 2 and 3 weeks ranged between 0% and 69.1%, suggesting that OLB has a moderate risk to die from chilling injuries. Exposure time and sampling date affected mortality, with lowest survival rates after 3 weeks, collected in March 2021. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a result of globalization of markets and increasing marine traffic, more than 130 introduced species have so far been recorded in the Wadden Sea. This unique coastal area constitutes an ecosystem of global importance and is recognized by UNESCO as a Natural World Heritage site. Efforts are made to monitor introduced species and to study their ecological effects on native species and biodiversity, ecosystem processes, and functioning. Social aspects that relate introduced species specifically to people and human society, however, are less studied. To explore this rather new field of research, qualitative interviews were conducted with stakeholders of the Wadden Sea, asking (1) How do introduced species affect people's lives and (2) How do people perceive introduced species? The interviews were evaluated with a qualitative content analysis. As one first result of this exploratory study it turned out that immaterial aspects of the Wadden Sea, such as recreational potential and cultural identity, appear to be largely affected by introduced species. Moreover, the mere fact of change was mostly regarded with skepticism or aversion, regardless of actual effects. Based on the stakeholder interviews, a conceptual framework with the factors identified as influencing perception was developed. It is suggested that a better understanding of the social component is essential for an integrated management and sustainable solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The invasive crayfish Faxonius immunis is regarded as a threat to amphibians and macroinvertebrates in the Upper Rhine Valley, Germany, eradicating macrophytes and establishing high-density populations in stagnant waters. This study investigates the macroinvertebrate community structure of five conservation ponds south of Karlsruhe, Germany, to identify effects caused by this invasive crayfish. Two of the ponds had a high population density of F. immunis, two were expected to have lower crayfish densities as they had been habitat modified with gravelled water beds as a crayfish management approach, and one pond was known to be free of crayfish but contained fish. The macroinvertebrate communities were analyzed considering their species richness and composition. The relative density of F. immunis within the samples was regarded as a representative indicator for crayfish population density and tested for its influence on the ordination along with habitat composition and abiotic factors using distance-based redundancy analysis. F. immunis was identified as a driving factor of the macroinvertebrate communities of sampled ponds. Additionally, this study indicates that gravelling ground beds as a management method for invasive burrowing crayfish species does not significantly influence the community composition but can minimize indirect effects caused by F. immunis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Invasive alien species (IAS) constitute a trans‐ and intracontinental challenge. With this article, we exemplify obstacles met during the implementation of the Regulation (EU) No. 1143/2014 against IAS and comparatively assess them through two case studies from two Member States, Austria and Romania, via qualitative content analysis. Challenges are identified, analyzed, and discussed based on interviews with stakeholders from both countries in the view of the three main intervention types within this Regulation: prevention, early detection, and rapid eradication and management. The obstacles, which the two Member States met, are related to creating, updating, and maintaining the Union List and to the distribution of competences, which influence the national and subnational cooperation and coordination. Financial resources, custom controls, national legislation, and awareness influence the implementation of the IAS Regulation too. This research contributes to improving knowledge about numerous details of the implementation and enforcement of this IAS‐Regulation to make them more feasible, not just for scientists, but also for decision‐ and policymakers, business owners, and other stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introduction and further spread of many alien species have been a result of trade and transport. Consequently, alien species are often found close to traffic infrastructure and urban areas. To contain and manage the spread of alien species, it is essential to identify and predict major routes of spread, which cannot be obtained by applying common modelling approaches such as species distribution models.Here, we present a new model called CASPIAN to simulate the dispersal of alien species along traffic infrastructure and the establishment of populations along these routes. The model simulates simultaneous spread of species of up to eight different modes of transport along roads, railways and waterways. We calibrated and validated the model using two species that spread within Germany as case studies: the terrestrial plant Senecio inaequidens and the freshwater clam Corbicula fluminea, and performed a shortest path analysis to quantify the relative importance of individual routes for spread.The application of the model yielded detailed predictions of dispersal and establishment for >600,000 segments of the traffic network throughout Germany. Once calibrated, the model captured the general spread dynamics of the two species with higher accuracy for the freshwater environment due to the higher quality of data available for the aquatic species.The quantification of spread routes using the shortest path analysis revealed a clear backbone of major routes of spread, which varied depending on the type of traffic network and the starting points considered. Major routes of spread aligned with high traffic intensities, but high traffic per se did not necessarily result in high spread intensities.Synthesis and application. By simulating the spreading dynamics of alien species along transport networks across multiple pathways, CASPIAN enables the identification of major spread routes along different dispersal pathways and quantification of their relative importance, which helps prioritising pathways of introduction as required by international biodiversity goals such as the CBD Aichi targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about occurrences of alien species is often provided in so-called checklists, which represents lists of reported alien species in a region. In many cases, available checklists cover whole countries, which is too coarse for many analyses and limits capabilities of assessing status and trends of biological invasions. Information about point-wise occurrences is available in large quantities at online facilities such as GBIF and OBIS, which, however, do not provide information about the invasion status of individual populations. To close this gap, we here provide a semi-automated workflow called DASCO to downscale regional checklists using occurrence records obtained from GBIF and OBIS. Within the workflow, coordinate-based occurrence records for species listed in the provided regional checklists are obtained from GBIF and OBIS, and the status of being an alien population is assigned using the information in the provided checklists. In this way, information in checklists is made available at the local scale, which can then be re-allocated to any other spatial categorisation as provided by the user. In addition, habitats of species are determined to distinguish between marine, brackish, terrestrial, and freshwater species, which allows splitting the provided checklists to the respective realms and ecoregions. By using checklists of global databases, we showcase the usage of the DASCO workflow and revealed > 35 million occurrence records of alien populations in terrestrial and marine regions worldwide, which were back-transformed to terrestrial and marine regions for comparison. DASCO has the potential to be used as a basis for the widely applied species distribution models or assessments of status and trends of biological invasions at large geographic scales. The workflow is implemented in R and in full compliance with the FAIR data principles of open science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The invasive pentatomid true bug Halyomorpha halys is reported for the first time from the German state of Hamburg, along with records from several other locations in Northern Germany. Specimens collected by scientists were evaluated along with records from citizen science platforms. DNA barcode sequences of several H. halys specimens from Hamburg were evaluated along with 42 sequences of the species from across the world in a haplotype network analysis demonstrating that all specimens studied from Hamburg had the haplotype H3. The present state of distribution of H. halys in Germany, patterns of range extension, invasiveness, and possible economic impacts are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Facies analysis is a well-established tool in sedimentary geology, which allows the reconstruction of the depositional palaeoenvironment using sedimentological, ecological and geochemical proxies. Following an actualistic approach, we mapped the biosedimentary facies of a large backbarrier tidal flat system over a decade in the field covering four tidal basins with an area of 144 km². The spatial distribution of biosedimentary facies shows a complex pattern on a local scale, which superimposes the shore-normal energy gradient on a regional scale. The main controlling factors are hydrodynamic energy, the relative position to tidal channels, the duration of emergence, organism-sediment interaction and the presence of invasive species. Due to strongly fluctuating abundances of benthic organisms, the lateral extension of biosedimentary facies may differ significantly over the years. However, the grain size distribution reflects a more long-term equilibrium with the hydrodynamics of this coastal region. Additionally, we have documented a system shift of biogenic structures caused by the invasion of a non-native species, which functions as an ecosystem engineering species. Since we have focussed on trace-making organisms, i.e., polychaetes and shell-bearing molluscs combined with abiotic parameters, the biosedimentary facies pattern of our study can be transferred into multidimensional facies analyses of sedimentary rocks deposited along ancient tidal coasts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quagga mussels have expanded their range across the northern hemisphere in recent decades owing to their dispersal abilities, prolific reproduction rates, and broad ecological tolerances. Their remarkable capacity to filter particulates from the water column has had profound effects on inland aquatic ecosystems. In the North American Great Lakes, quagga mussel populations have increased inexorably since the late 1980’s, but it remains unclear whether quagga mussels will follow a similar trajectory in Europe where they have appeared more recently. Here we apply knowledge from a long-term quagga population monitoring effort in the North American lakes to predict future quagga populations in deep European lakes, where quaggas are quickly becoming a conspicuous part of the underwater landscape. We predict that quagga mussel biomass in Lakes Biel, Constance, and Geneva may increase by a factor of 9–20 by 2045. Like in North America, this increase may be characterized by a shift to larger individuals and deeper depths as the population matures. If realized, this rapid expansion of quagga mussels would likely drive the largest aquatic ecosystem change in deep European lakes since the eutrophication period of the mid-20th century.

Questions: How has exotic plant species richness and composition changed in and adjacent to a montane road verge over a 10‐year period? Are montane road verges conduits of exotic species' dispersal into adjacent, undisturbed hinterland? Location: Montane grassland, Maloti‐Drakensberg Transfrontier Conservation Area, South Africa. Methods: We surveyed road verge and adjacent hinterland transects (25 × 2 m; N = 80) across an elevational gradient of 1,500–2,874 m a.s.l. in 2007 and 2017. In each transect, we estimated the cover of each exotic plant species and the total cover of indigenous species. Generalised Linear Models were fitted to test if exotic species' richness and cover had changed over time. A Canonical Correspondence Analysis was used to determine if exotic species' composition had changed over time. Results: Ten years onwards, exotic species richness had increased significantly across the entire elevational gradient, predominantly in the low‐ to mid‐elevational range. Road verge and adjacent hinterland transects differed in species composition in 2007, but no longer in 2017. Conclusion: Exotic species richness and composition displayed a high spatiotemporal rate of change. Over time, exotic species increasingly moved into the hinterland from the verges as a result of human‐mediated colonisation pressure. These results indicate that montane road verges are far better conduits for the dispersal of exotic species than previously assumed, and that further colonisation of the hinterland by exotics can be expected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The Spanish slug (Arion vulgaris, also known as A. lusitanicus) is considered one of the most invasive species in agriculture, horticulture and private gardens all over Europe. Although this slug has been problematic for decades, there is still not much known about its occurrence across private gardens and the underlying meteorological and ecological factors. One reason for this knowledge gap is the limited access of researchers to private gardens. Here we used a citizen science approach to overcome this obstacle and examined whether the occurrence of Arionidae in Austrian gardens was associated with meteorological (air temperature, precipitation, global solar radiation, relative humidity) or ecological factors (plant diversity, earthworm activity). Occurrence of the invasive A. vulgaris versus the similar-looking native A. rufus was compared using a DNA-barcoding approach. Results Slugs were collected from 1061 gardens from the dry Pannonian lowland to the wet alpine climate (altitudinal range 742 m). Slug abundance in gardens was best explained and negatively associated with the parameters “sum of the mean air temperature in spring”, “number of frost days in the previous winter” and “mean daily global solar radiation on the day of data collection”. Precipitation, plant diversity and earthworm activity were also related to slug abundance, but positively. Out of our genetic sampling of collected slugs, 92% belonged to A. vulgaris. Conclusions Our study showed that citizen science (i) is a feasible approach to record species occurrence in restricted areas across a wide geographical range and (ii) could be more widely employed in order to identify underlying environmental factors of species occurrence.

The Pacific oyster, Magallana gigas, is an extremely successful invader with established populations in marine and estuarine habitats almost all over the world. Ecological implications of the introduction of this species to indigenous communities are well documented. However, the processes by which this species successfully establishes in a recipient community is still insufficiently understood. The early detection of the oyster at the island of Helgoland (North Sea) provided the ideal opportunity to investigate whether physical mechanisms, such as wave-exposure, influence their successful colonisation. We hypothesized that oyster colonisation benefits from wave-protected conditions. For this purpose, we evaluated colonisation success of M. gigas among wave-protected sites and wave-exposed sites along the island's pier system. The densities of M. gigas were significantly higher at wave-protected sites than at wave-exposed sites, and the frequency distributions of oyster lengths indicated better growth and higher survival rates in the harbours. This higher colonisation success at wave-protected sites may be explained by the relative retention time of water masses in the harbours, probably resulting in both reduced larval drift and lower energy demands for secretion formation (i.e. firmer binding to the substrate). The fact that the density of M. gigas can vary greatly on small spatial scales depending on exposure corroborates a multiple exposure sampling approach to monitor oyster populations in order to avoid potential overestimations of population sizes in given areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Profound changes to the species configuration of ecosystems globally during the 19th to 21st centuries, resulting from the introduction of neobiota, have produced a distinctive palaeontological signature in sedimentary deposits, here exemplified by those of the River Thames. Coring near Teddington Lock (ca. 4.3 m above sea level, ca. 89 km upstream from the mouth of the Thames estuary) yielded dense assemblages of shells of the invasive Asian clam Corbicula fluminea (recently invaded in 2004) and the zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha (invaded 1824), which together accounted for 96% of individuals sampled. Population densities of C. fluminea of over 6000 individuals per m2 were maintained for a depth of 1 m indicating that the Asian clam is an important biostratigraphical marker in the Thames for sedimentary deposits accumulating since 2004. The first modern European occurrence of C. fluminea was in Portugal in 1980. In 1987, the first occurrence of C. fluminea on the northern coast of South America was observed in the Caripe River, Venezuela. The non‐native range of D. polymorpha was restricted to continental Europe for over 200 years until it appeared in the Great Lakes, USA, in 1986 having been transported in ballast water. Within three years, it reached populations of over 750,000 individuals per m2 and it is presently recorded in 35 states. Therefore, the pan‐Atlantic range expansion of D. polymorpha, coupled with the recent invasion history of C. fluminea in Venezuela and Portugal, identifies a biostratigraphical interval in sedimentary deposits forming from the early 1980s that can be correlated between Europe and the Americas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combined morphological and molecular genetic analyses confirmed the occurrence of the stalked jellyfish Haliclystus tenuis Kishinouye, 1910 on the coast of the island Helgoland (North Sea, German Bight). The species was previously reported in Japan and China only, and it was assumed that its geographical range is limited to the northwest Pacific. Possibly, the species was overlooked in Atlantic waters because of its morphological similarity with the Atlantic species Haliclystus octoradiatus Clark, 1863. However, the low intra-specific variation in mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) does not indicate a geographic separation of Atlantic and Pacific specimens and may indicate a non-native introduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Freshwater fishes are among the most threatened groups of vertebrates, with 39% of all European fish species facing extinction. Herein, we provide a comprehensive analyses of historical data as well as fish monitoring data from 1989 through 2013 from Bavaria, Germany. The results of this study indicate that the most pronounced species-turnover already had occurred before the 1990s. Severe loss of species (21 out of 69 species lost until 1990s), decrease in spatial distribution (51 species, 27 reduced to <50% of historical distribution), decrease of abundance, shifts towards potamal species and the establishment of novel communities due to increasing colonization with non-native species was evident. Declines were strongest for gravel-spawning species of the hyporhitral and epipotamal in medium-sized and large rivers (e.g. grayling (Thymallus thymallus), nase (Chondrostoma nasus), barbel (Barbus barbus)), suggesting that effects of increasing water temperatures and increased fine sediment loads probably strongly contribute to the decline of those species. Our results generally confirmed the validity of current conservation status for most species, but also identified species (dace (Leuciscus leuciscus), chub (Squalius cephalus), trout (Salmo trutta) , minnow (Phoxinus phoxinus), nase and barbel) and habitats (medium-sized and large rivers) that deserve higher priority in conservation management. More consistent sampling of the same sites over years and a quantitative monitoring of environmental impact factors in appropriate spatial and temporal resolution is crucial to allow a future prioritization in freshwater fish conservation. Highlights • Freshwater fish are among the most threatened groups of vertebrates. • We compare fish communities from historic data and monitoring data from 1989 to 2013. • We detected a severe loss of species and decrease in distribution and abundance. • An establishment of neobiota resulting in novel community structures was evident. • We identified species and habitats that deserve higher priority in conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The kelp Undaria pinnatifida, native to East Asian shores, was unintentionally introduced with Pacific oysters into the Mediterranean in 1971. Intentional introduction from there to the French Atlantic coast 12 years later led to a gradual spread to the British Isles and the North Sea. Here, we report on the northernmost established population in continental Europe, and suggest a further spread into Scandinavian waters to be almost inevitable. In 2016, several thalli were found washed ashore at the eastern side of the island of Sylt in the northern Wadden Sea (German Bight, Eastern North Sea). Most specimens bore fertile sporophylls and thallus lengths of >1 m were common. In June 2017, 91 sporophytes were found attached to a mixed bed of Pacific oysters and native blue mussels, located just below low tide level in a moderately sheltered position. Mean thallus length was 0.2 m and the longest 0.7 m. Most had distinctive sporophylls and released spores in the laboratory. From sporophylls collected in the previous year, we successfully reared a new generation, demonstrating the kelp's potential for further spread by natural means or human vectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Anthropocene deposits of England, here regarded as those formed after ∼1950 CE, are now extensive, take various forms, and may be characterized and recognized by a number of stratigraphic signals, such as artificial radionuclides, pesticide residues, microplastics, enhanced fly ash levels, concrete fragments and a novel variety of ‘technofossils’ and neobiotic species. They include the uppermost parts of both ‘natural’ deposits such as the sediment layers formed in lakes and estuaries, and more directly human-made or human-influenced ones such as landfill deposits and the ‘artificial ground’ beneath urban areas and around major constructions. ‘Negative deposits’ include the worked areas of quarries and regions such as the English Fenland, where thick peat deposits have ablated to leave a strongly modified underlying landscape, and extend beneath into the subterranean realm as mine workings, metro systems and boreholes. The production of these is still rapidly increasing and evolving in character, while the early signs of global change, such as warming, sea level rise, and modifications to biotic assemblages, are beginning to further modify the emerging geology of this new phase of Earth history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2011, the non-indigenous Pacific bryozoan Smittoidea prolifica Osburn, 1952 was observed repeatedly on shell gravel in the trench Tiefe Rinne during annual long-term monitoring assessments of subtidal sites around the island Helgoland. It is the earliest discovery for the German North Sea and three years earlier than its first detection at commercial harbour sites on the German Wadden Sea coast. Introduction to the North-East Atlantic is assumed to have occurred before 1995 with oyster transfers to The Netherlands for aquaculture purposes. The presence of S. prolifica in the natural habitat of the Tiefe Rinne, relatively distant from the main shipping routes and commercial ports in the German North Sea and without nearby mussel cultures, requires the consideration of introduction vectors other than intentional shellfish transport and international shipping traffic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine environments are threatened by biological invaders that are transported via ship hulls or ballast water at increasing rates around the globe. Most management strategies that should prevent or reduce the impact of alien species include prevention and eradication programs that both rely on an early detection of introduced species. Early detection requires an up to date inventory of present species and efficient monitoring programs to identify newly arrived species. This study surveyed potential invasion ‘hot spots’ in the coastal waters of the central Wadden Sea, including commercial ports (‘port’ stations) as well as fairways, roads, groynes and oyster reefs (‘Wadden Sea’ stations) to establish lists of macrobenthic species as baseline for future monitoring. In the ports we applied simultaneously the HELCOM/OSPAR protocol (H/O) and a regional established rapid assessment (RA) to enable the evaluation of the effectiveness and comprehensiveness of both methods. While the RA is mainly based on the visual screening of species in easy accessible habitats in the field, the H/O includes an extensive sampling by operation of scientific divers boat times and a 4-times higher time effort for sample processing. We identified among all sites 273 species including 37 alien species. The fauna was composed of 210 native and 32 alien species, while the flora was composed of 26 native and 5 alien species. The ports were a diverse habitat with species numbers from 65 to 109. At the Wadden Sea stations, exclusively monitored by the less extensive RA, only half of the species numbers (36–66 species) were detected. However, on the oyster reefs the relative occurrence of alien species compared to natives was similar to the ports and one oyster reef (Nordland) even had the highest ratio (25%, 14 species) of alien species of all investigated sites. The H/O protocol identified 179 species compared to 114 species identified by the RA. Regarding alien species, the H/O provided 85% of alien species, the RA only 67%. Especially with regard to the actual discussion on harmonized monitoring protocols within the Northeast Atlantic and Baltic regions, we recommend that future port surveys should apply the more extensive H/O protocol, since restrictions to the RA decrease drastically the chance of an early detection of alien species. We also recommend complementing the survey of ports with natural invasion ‘hot spots’ like the oyster reefs by rapid assessment. This combined monitoring design secures a significant increase in the early detection of alien species as demonstrated in our study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spread of the invasive and allergenicAmbrosia artemisiifoliaL. in Italy was analysed and mapped using distribution data from a wide range of sources.Ambrosia artemisiifoliaoccupies 1057 floristic quadrants which are mostly distributed in the Po plain. The distribution obtained represents the basis to implement urgent management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Editorial presents the focus, scope, policies, and the inaugural issue of NeoBiota, a new open access peer-reviewed journal of biological invasions. The new journal NeoBiota is a continuation of the former NEOBIOTA publication series. The journal will deal with all aspects of invasion biology and impose no restrictions on manuscript size neither on use of color. NeoBiota implies an XML-based editorial workflow and several cutting-edge innovations in publishing and dissemination, such as semantic markup of and enhancements to published texts, data publication, and extensive cross-linking within the journal and to external sources.

In the course of a biomonitoring program to compile a neobiota baseline for German North Sea coastal waters of the Federal State of Lower Saxony, different natural and artificial hard substrates and various soft substrates were sampled at potential bioinvasion 'hot-spots' in the region. The survey followed the standardized sampling guideline of the HELCOM/OSPAR protocol. We identified several colonies of Smittoidea prolifica Osburn, 1952 at two harbours in the Jade estuary. Both harbours are characterized by international shipping activity while the Jade Weser Port was only recently constructed between 2009 and 2012. However, the vector of introduction remains unclear. These records from November 2014 are the first for German coastal waters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The knowledge of phenotypic variation in the European range of the highly allergenic Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. (common ragweed) is not entirely complete, even though it is an invasive species of utmost concern. We hypothesized the prevalence of phenotypic differentiations between common ragweed populations in the introduced range, and we assumed that those differentiations were related to environmental conditions at the points of origin. Using a common garden experiment, we investigated biomass allocation, growth rates, and flowering phenology of 38 European common ragweed populations originating from a major geographical gradient. We observed considerable phenotypic variation in growth parameters and flowering phenology, e.g. mean aboveground biomass varied from 23.3 to 47.3 g between the populations. We were able to relate most measured traits with environmental parameters prevailing at the points of origin. For example, early growth of ruderal populations was highly correlated with temperature and precipitation at the point of origin. Late growth and flowering phenology were highly correlated with latitude, i.e. individuals from northern populations grew smaller and flowered and dispersed their pollen and seeds up to 5 weeks earlier than individuals from southern populations. We also found a longitudinal gradient in flowering phenology which has not yet been described. The existence of such a high variability in the introduced range may facilitate further range expansion. We suggest that the correlation with environmental variables rests upon genetic variation possibly due to adaptations to the respective environment. To clarify if such adaptation results from multiple events of introduction or as evolutionary response after introduction, genetic investigations are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Invasion of non-native species is among the top threats for the biodiversity and functioning of native and agricultural ecosystems worldwide. We investigated whether the herbivory of the slug Arion vulgaris (formerly Arion lusitanicus; Gastropoda), that is listed among the 100 worst alien species in Europe, is affected by soil organisms commonly present in terrestrial ecosystems (i.e. earthworms-Annelida: Lumbricidae and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi-AMF, Glomerales). We hypothesized that slug herbivory would be affected by soil organisms via altered plant nutrient availability and plant quality. In a greenhouse experiment, we created a simple plant community consisting of a grass, a forb, and a legume species and inoculated these systems with either two earthworm species and/or four AMF taxa. Slugs were introduced after plants were established. Earthworms significantly reduced total slug herbivory in AMF-inoculated plant communities ( P = 0.013). Across plant species, earthworms increased leaf total N and secondary metabolites, AMF decreased leaf thickness. Mycorrhizae induced a shift in slug feeding preference from non-legumes to legumes; the grass was generally avoided by slugs. AMF effects on legume herbivory can partly be explained by the AMF-induced increase in total N and decrease in C/N ratio; earthworm effects are less clear as no worm-induced alterations of legume plant chemistry were observed. The presence of earthworms increased average AMF colonization of plant roots by 140 % ( P < 0.001). Total shoot mass was significantly increased by AMF ( P < 0.001). These data suggest that the feeding behavior of this invasive slug is altered by a belowground control of plant chemical quality and community structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Neobiota as non-native species are commonly considered as alien species. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) intends to 'prevent the introduction of, control or eradicate those alien species which threaten ecosystems, habitats or species'. The European Union has financed the DAISIE research project for the first pan-European inventory of Invasive Alien Species (IAS), which is supposed to serve as a basis for prevention and control of biological invasions. This paper discusses the evaluation approach for classifying '100 of the Worst' IAS in Europe by the EU DAISIE research project. The main impact categories used by DAISIE for assorting '100 of the Worst' IAS are investigated and the texts of the 'Wanted' species factsheets are examined. Two examples from the DAISIE factsheets of the '100 of the Worst' IAS [Tree of Heaven ( Ailanthus altissima) and the Raccoon ( Procyon lotor)] are discussed to illustrate DAISIE's biodiversity evaluation approach in more detail. However, the classification criteria used by DAISIE do not allow for sufficiently differentiating these neobiota from an ecological behavior of native species with a similar ecological niche. In conclusion, neobiota evaluations are not comprehensive when they refer mainly to the successful expansion and competition with native species into available ecological niches. A comprehensive assessment of the impacts of neobiota on biodiversity and humans needs to take into account the different values of biodiversity as mentioned in the preamble of the CBD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Editorial presents the focus, scope, policies, and the inaugural issue of NeoBiota, a new open access peer-reviewed journal of biological invasions. The new journal NeoBiota is a continuation of the former NEOBIOTA publication series. The journal will deal with all aspects of invasion biology and impose no restrictions on manuscript size neither on use of color. NeoBiota implies an XML-based editorial workflow and several cutting-edge innovations in publishing and dissemination, such as semantic markup of and enhancements to published texts, data publication, and extensive cross-linking within the journal and to external sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ecology of selected species of spiders (Araneae), harvestmen (Opiliones), and the neglected tropical order Schizomida, alien to Europe, is discussed. Their geographic origins and pathways of introduction, by transportation with goods, are similar to other predatory terrestrial arthropods. Occurrence in buildings (synanthropy) is a prerequisite for range expansion in many arachnid species. Thelytokous parthenogenesis facilitated spread of a few spider, harvestman and schizomid species outside their native range. Both prey generalists and specialists (woodlice-eating Dysdera crocata and ant-eating Zodarion rubidum) are among species successfully expanding their range. Alien arachnids include individual species belonging to many different families. We stress the absence of true invasiveness of alien arachnids in Europe. Some unusual adverse effects of alien arachnids were recorded, such as pollution of buildings and clogged car fuel system ventilation tubes. Frequency of painful biting and threat to native biota are low. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: The Spanish slug ( Arion vulgaris, also known as A. lusitanicus ) is considered one of the most invasive species in agriculture, horticulture and private gardens all over Europe. Although this slug has been problematic for decades, there is still not much known about its occurrence across private gardens and the underlying meteorological and ecological factors. One reason for this knowledge gap is the limited access of researchers to private gardens. Here we used a citizen science approach to overcome this obstacle and examined whether the occurrence of Arionidae in Austrian gardens was associated with meteorological (air temperature, precipitation, global solar radiation, relative humidity) or ecological factors (plant diversity, earthworm activity). Occurrence of the invasive A. vulgaris versus the similar-looking native A. rufus was compared using a DNA-barcoding approach. Results: Slugs were collected from 1061 gardens from the dry Pannonian lowland to the wet alpine climate (altitudinal range 742 m). Slug abundance in gardens was best explained and negatively associated with the parameters "sum of the mean air temperature in spring", "number of frost days in the previous winter" and "mean daily global solar radiation on the day of data collection". Precipitation, plant diversity and earthworm activity were also related to slug abundance, but positively. Out of our genetic sampling of collected slugs, 92% belonged to A. vulgaris. Conclusions: Our study showed that citizen science (i) is a feasible approach to record species occurrence in restricted areas across a wide geographical range and (ii) could be more widely employed in order to identify underlying environmental factors of species occurrence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]