2:50 PM - 3:05 PM
[U05-05] Identifying invasion risks of commonly used exotic herbaceous species for revegetation in Taiwan
Keywords:introduced species, invasion risk assessment system, native species
In its "Global Land Outlook 2" report, the United Nations points out that up to 40% of the Earth's land area is threatened by land degradation. Revegetation is a crucial means to treat land degradation. However, some exotic species used in revegetation lead to species invasion, damaging local ecosystems and harming the economics of human society. Our study aims to examine the invasion risks of commonly used exotic herbaceous species for revegetation restoration in Taiwan using existing invasion risk assessment systems and identify an assessment system suitable for use in Taiwan.
Through literature reviews, this study has identified 22 commonly used exotic herbaceous species for revegetation in Taiwan and collected invasion risk assessment systems developed in Taiwan, Australia, and the United Kingdom. The invasion risks of each herbaceous species will be quantified using these three systems. The user-friendliness of these systems will be compared based on several aspects, such as whether users need specialized biological knowledge, the type of questions, the difficulty of obtaining assessment data, and whether they can be applied to herbaceous species for revegetation.
Our results showed that many exotic herbaceous species have high invasion risks. The three assessment systems provide consistent evaluations of the invasion risks for these herbaceous species examined in our study. However, the assessment system in Taiwan is the most user-friendly, as it only requires easily obtainable information about plant reproductive characteristics from the internet or literature. On the other hand, the Australian and UK assessment systems require an expert level of biological knowledge to operate. Currently, revegetation in Taiwan heavily relies on exotic herbaceous species. Our study highlighted the urgency of developing native herbaceous species in Taiwan. In the future, relevant authorities can use the Taiwan invasion assessment system before introducing new exotic herbaceous species to avoid introducing species with high invasion risks again.
Through literature reviews, this study has identified 22 commonly used exotic herbaceous species for revegetation in Taiwan and collected invasion risk assessment systems developed in Taiwan, Australia, and the United Kingdom. The invasion risks of each herbaceous species will be quantified using these three systems. The user-friendliness of these systems will be compared based on several aspects, such as whether users need specialized biological knowledge, the type of questions, the difficulty of obtaining assessment data, and whether they can be applied to herbaceous species for revegetation.
Our results showed that many exotic herbaceous species have high invasion risks. The three assessment systems provide consistent evaluations of the invasion risks for these herbaceous species examined in our study. However, the assessment system in Taiwan is the most user-friendly, as it only requires easily obtainable information about plant reproductive characteristics from the internet or literature. On the other hand, the Australian and UK assessment systems require an expert level of biological knowledge to operate. Currently, revegetation in Taiwan heavily relies on exotic herbaceous species. Our study highlighted the urgency of developing native herbaceous species in Taiwan. In the future, relevant authorities can use the Taiwan invasion assessment system before introducing new exotic herbaceous species to avoid introducing species with high invasion risks again.