From charismatic macrofauna to tiny sea squirts, here are some species formally identified by scientists in 2024.

As yellow-legged hornets spread through South Carolina’s Lowcountry region, threatening the local honey crop, a state team of bee defenders is racing to the rescue.

La mayoría provienen del tráfico marítimo internacional y el Mediterráneo es el área más afectada

Se incluye en el Catálogo Español de Especies Exóticas Invasoras por su capacidad para rebrotar tras los incendios y desplazar a las plantas autóctonas

Certain invasive exotic species, such as the red swamp crayfish, are harmful to our environment because they transmit crayfish plague to native species. But there are also non-native fish and crayfish...

Cites, the United Nations organisation which regulates wildlife trade, meets in Sri Lanka in May for its 18th session. First on its agenda should be its chronic inability to conserve the world’s natur...

Since 1995, the spread of the green mussel Perna viridis (L.) along the South American coast has raised concerns about its potential impacts on coastal communities in vulnerable areas. This study pres...

Abril, S. & Gómez, C. (2009). Ascertaining key factors behind the coexistence of the native ant species Plagiolepis pygmaea with the invasive Argentine ant Linepithema humile (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Sociobiology, 53: 559-568.

The introduction of exotic tree species with dissimilar leaf habits or distinctive chemical composition into native communities may cause impacts on aquatic organisms, yet the relative influence of leaf habit and geographic origin on those impacts remain poorly understood. In this study, we experimentally explored the ecotoxicological effects of aqueous leaf litter extracts from 15 tree species differing in leaf habit (deciduous vs evergreen) and geographic origin (exotics vs natives in Spain) on the mortality and behavior of the aquatic snail Potamopyrgus antipodarum (Gray, 1843). Snails were exposed for 7 days to three leaf extract concentrations of each tree species. No mortality effects were observed at any concentration. In contrast, the behavioral responses of snails were negatively affected at the highest concentration, showing increased reaction time and reduced speed. These responses were species-specific and associated with leaf habit and chemical composition of extracts rather than geographic origin. Leaf extracts from deciduous trees caused a greater slowing down of snails than extracts from evergreen trees. Overall, our results indicate that leaf litter impacts on Potamopyrgus antiporadrum depend more on tree species identity and leaf habit than on native or exotic status, highlighting the importance of leaf traits when assessing ecotoxicological risks in freshwater ecosystems.

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Natural disturbances have the potential to limit exotic species invasions. The exotic grass, Urochloa humidicola, has high propagation potential following seasonal flooding, but, flooding tends to reduce the cover. Neither the potential for U. humidicola form a seed bank for recruitment following seasonal flooding, nor the mechanism responsible for reducing adult plant cover during floods is currently known. The soil seed bank of a U. humidicola was sampled for 2 years. To examine the potential role of competition with aquatic macrophytes in reducing its cover during floods, cuttings of U. humidicola were flooded in tanks in presence and absence of aquatic macrophytes for 3 months. Seedling density of U. humidicola was higher post-flood (245 seedlings/m−2) than the post-dry (130 seedlings/m−2). Germination occurred throughout the year, with highest seedling densities at the five to 7 months following soil collection. Competition with aquatic plants significantly increased mortality (c. 70%) of inundated U. humidicola. Our findings suggest that the survival potential of U. humidicola under flood is high, but is limited by shading of aquatic macrophytes. Nonetheless, its seed bank germinates throughout the year, though delayed by flooding. Control of invasive species in grasslands of the Pantanal depend on natural hydrological and biological drives.

Post-introduction evolution of plant defense traits is fu...

A Portuguese eucalyptus forestry project is rapidly spreading harmful exotic species in Mozambique’s rural areas in order to supply Europe's packaging needs. Davide Mancini, Juan Maza Calleja and…

Tropical dry forests (TDF) are amongst the most important tropical biomes globally, recognised for their remarkable biodiversity. This biome features a favourable climate and high soil fertility, whic...

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