Beyond the Trail—Understanding Non-Native Plant Invasions in Mountain Ecosystems

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Standard

Beyond the Trail—Understanding Non-Native Plant Invasions in Mountain Ecosystems. / Barros, Agustina; Fuentes Lillo, Eduardo; Aschero, Valeria et al.
In: Global Ecology and Biogeography, Vol. 34, No. 6, e70060, 06.2025.

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Harvard

Barros, A, Fuentes Lillo, E, Aschero, V, Pauchard, A, Alvarez, MA, Wedegärtner, R, Clavel, J, Müllerová, J, Pergl, J, Zong, S, Vítková, M, Klinerová, T, Cavieres, LA, Larson, C, Rew, LJ, Seipel, T, Meffre, C, Arellano, T, Essl, F, Dullinger, S, Gwate, O, Clark, VR, Achermann, M, Haider, S & Lembrechts, JJ 2025, 'Beyond the Trail—Understanding Non-Native Plant Invasions in Mountain Ecosystems', Global Ecology and Biogeography, vol. 34, no. 6, e70060. https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.70060

APA

Barros, A., Fuentes Lillo, E., Aschero, V., Pauchard, A., Alvarez, M. A., Wedegärtner, R., Clavel, J., Müllerová, J., Pergl, J., Zong, S., Vítková, M., Klinerová, T., Cavieres, L. A., Larson, C., Rew, L. J., Seipel, T., Meffre, C., Arellano, T., Essl, F., ... Lembrechts, J. J. (2025). Beyond the Trail—Understanding Non-Native Plant Invasions in Mountain Ecosystems. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 34(6), Article e70060. https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.70060

Vancouver

Barros A, Fuentes Lillo E, Aschero V, Pauchard A, Alvarez MA, Wedegärtner R et al. Beyond the Trail—Understanding Non-Native Plant Invasions in Mountain Ecosystems. Global Ecology and Biogeography. 2025 Jun;34(6):e70060. doi: 10.1111/geb.70060

Bibtex

@article{6749890c4c604209853333586aec1086,
title = "Beyond the Trail—Understanding Non-Native Plant Invasions in Mountain Ecosystems",
abstract = "Aim: We aimed to examine the abiotic, biotic and anthropogenic drivers of non-native plant species distribution along hiking trails in mountainous regions. Location: Nine mountain regions across six continents, including North America (USA), South America (Argentina and Chile), Europe (Sweden, Norway, Czech Republic), Africa (South Africa), Asia (China) and Oceania (Australia). Time Period: Data were collected between 2016 to 2022 during the summer season. Major Taxa Studied: Vascular plants. Methods: We implemented a standardised sampling design (MIREN trail survey) with T-shaped sample sites placed parallel to trails and perpendicular to adjacent vegetation. We examined the main drivers (abiotic, biotic and anthropogenic factors) affecting non-native species' presence, richness and cover. Results: At the global scale, abiotic (climatic) variables explained most of the variation in non-native species richness. In contrast, biotic factors were the most important for the presence and cover of non-native plants. Anthropogenic factors, including distance to the trail, use intensity and livestock grazing, were also important but to a lesser extent than the main factors. While the total number of non-native species differed across regions, the patterns explaining plant invasions were consistent. Main Conclusions: Our regional study identified mountain trails that are particularly vulnerable to plant invasions. Our findings suggest that under future scenarios of climate change, increased anthropogenic pressure and heightened livestock activity, the presence of non-native species beyond trail edges may become more frequent. This highlights the need to restrict off-trail activities in areas of high conservation value.",
keywords = "anthropogenic use, global protocols, MIREN, monitoring, mountains, plant invasions, trails, Biology, Ecosystems Research",
author = "Agustina Barros and {Fuentes Lillo}, Eduardo and Valeria Aschero and An{\'i}bal Pauchard and Alvarez, {Mar{\'i}a Alisa} and Ronja Wedeg{\"a}rtner and Jan Clavel and Jana M{\"u}llerov{\'a} and Jan Pergl and Shengwei Zong and Michaela V{\'i}tkov{\'a} and Tereza Klinerov{\'a} and Cavieres, {Lohengrin A.} and Christian Larson and Rew, {Lisa J.} and Tim Seipel and Chloe Meffre and Tomas Arellano and Franz Essl and Stefan Dullinger and Onalenna Gwate and Clark, {V. Ralph} and Marc Achermann and Sylvia Haider and Lembrechts, {Jonas J.}",
note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2025 The Author(s). Global Ecology and Biogeography published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.",
year = "2025",
month = jun,
doi = "10.1111/geb.70060",
language = "English",
volume = "34",
journal = "Global Ecology and Biogeography",
issn = "1466-822X",
publisher = "Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd.",
number = "6",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Beyond the Trail—Understanding Non-Native Plant Invasions in Mountain Ecosystems

AU - Barros, Agustina

AU - Fuentes Lillo, Eduardo

AU - Aschero, Valeria

AU - Pauchard, Aníbal

AU - Alvarez, María Alisa

AU - Wedegärtner, Ronja

AU - Clavel, Jan

AU - Müllerová, Jana

AU - Pergl, Jan

AU - Zong, Shengwei

AU - Vítková, Michaela

AU - Klinerová, Tereza

AU - Cavieres, Lohengrin A.

AU - Larson, Christian

AU - Rew, Lisa J.

AU - Seipel, Tim

AU - Meffre, Chloe

AU - Arellano, Tomas

AU - Essl, Franz

AU - Dullinger, Stefan

AU - Gwate, Onalenna

AU - Clark, V. Ralph

AU - Achermann, Marc

AU - Haider, Sylvia

AU - Lembrechts, Jonas J.

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2025 The Author(s). Global Ecology and Biogeography published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

PY - 2025/6

Y1 - 2025/6

N2 - Aim: We aimed to examine the abiotic, biotic and anthropogenic drivers of non-native plant species distribution along hiking trails in mountainous regions. Location: Nine mountain regions across six continents, including North America (USA), South America (Argentina and Chile), Europe (Sweden, Norway, Czech Republic), Africa (South Africa), Asia (China) and Oceania (Australia). Time Period: Data were collected between 2016 to 2022 during the summer season. Major Taxa Studied: Vascular plants. Methods: We implemented a standardised sampling design (MIREN trail survey) with T-shaped sample sites placed parallel to trails and perpendicular to adjacent vegetation. We examined the main drivers (abiotic, biotic and anthropogenic factors) affecting non-native species' presence, richness and cover. Results: At the global scale, abiotic (climatic) variables explained most of the variation in non-native species richness. In contrast, biotic factors were the most important for the presence and cover of non-native plants. Anthropogenic factors, including distance to the trail, use intensity and livestock grazing, were also important but to a lesser extent than the main factors. While the total number of non-native species differed across regions, the patterns explaining plant invasions were consistent. Main Conclusions: Our regional study identified mountain trails that are particularly vulnerable to plant invasions. Our findings suggest that under future scenarios of climate change, increased anthropogenic pressure and heightened livestock activity, the presence of non-native species beyond trail edges may become more frequent. This highlights the need to restrict off-trail activities in areas of high conservation value.

AB - Aim: We aimed to examine the abiotic, biotic and anthropogenic drivers of non-native plant species distribution along hiking trails in mountainous regions. Location: Nine mountain regions across six continents, including North America (USA), South America (Argentina and Chile), Europe (Sweden, Norway, Czech Republic), Africa (South Africa), Asia (China) and Oceania (Australia). Time Period: Data were collected between 2016 to 2022 during the summer season. Major Taxa Studied: Vascular plants. Methods: We implemented a standardised sampling design (MIREN trail survey) with T-shaped sample sites placed parallel to trails and perpendicular to adjacent vegetation. We examined the main drivers (abiotic, biotic and anthropogenic factors) affecting non-native species' presence, richness and cover. Results: At the global scale, abiotic (climatic) variables explained most of the variation in non-native species richness. In contrast, biotic factors were the most important for the presence and cover of non-native plants. Anthropogenic factors, including distance to the trail, use intensity and livestock grazing, were also important but to a lesser extent than the main factors. While the total number of non-native species differed across regions, the patterns explaining plant invasions were consistent. Main Conclusions: Our regional study identified mountain trails that are particularly vulnerable to plant invasions. Our findings suggest that under future scenarios of climate change, increased anthropogenic pressure and heightened livestock activity, the presence of non-native species beyond trail edges may become more frequent. This highlights the need to restrict off-trail activities in areas of high conservation value.

KW - anthropogenic use

KW - global protocols

KW - MIREN

KW - monitoring

KW - mountains

KW - plant invasions

KW - trails

KW - Biology

KW - Ecosystems Research

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=105007903166&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1111/geb.70060

DO - 10.1111/geb.70060

M3 - Journal articles

AN - SCOPUS:105007903166

VL - 34

JO - Global Ecology and Biogeography

JF - Global Ecology and Biogeography

SN - 1466-822X

IS - 6

M1 - e70060

ER -

DOI