Insect farming can repeat the invasion mistakes of aquaculture – unless we act early

Insect farming is often promoted as a sustainable alternative to conventional livestock, with the potential to reduce land use, emissions, and pressure on natural resources. However, scaling up any food production system also carries environmental risks. In this study, we show that one important risk – biological invasions caused by escaped farmed species – has received far too little attention in the rapidly growing insect … Continue reading Insect farming can repeat the invasion mistakes of aquaculture – unless we act early

What happens belowground when invasive species are controlled?

A better understanding of what happens belowground when restoring coastal vegetation may be useful to better plan restoration. However, little is known about what happens belowground when invasive species are controlled in restoration settings. My students and I used a protected area of sandy coastal vegetation in an island in Southern Brazil as a model to investigate belowground dynamics in plant communities under restoration. These … Continue reading What happens belowground when invasive species are controlled?

Scotland’s iconic Red deer threatened by invasive ‘super Sika’

Calum Brown and his team share their findings on managing native and non-native deer species in Scotland and discuss potential solutions. Scotland’s deer numbers are thought to be at an all-time high. Although estimates vary, something like a million deer currently roam the land, around double the numbers present in 1990. This growing population has serious impacts, including limiting the regeneration of our small, fragmented … Continue reading Scotland’s iconic Red deer threatened by invasive ‘super Sika’

Quarries and garbage dumps inside the Galapagos National Park: How can we restore them?

Anna Calle-Loor, co-author of a new publication, shares her team’s experience assessing the survival of plant species in the Galapagos to inform decision-making amongst stakeholders. When you think of the Galapagos Islands, what comes to mind? Perhaps volcanic landscapes, giant tortoises and other unique wildlife, scenes that could easily belong in a nature documentary. But behind this iconic scenery lies a less picturesque reality: the … Continue reading Quarries and garbage dumps inside the Galapagos National Park: How can we restore them?

Fire season and drought influence fire effects on invasive grasses

In this Q&A, we discussed with author Charlotte Reemts the background behind her team’s recently published meta-analysis focused on invasive bluestems. Why study this group of grasses? Warm-season grasses from these two genera (Bothriochloa and Dichanthium) are interesting because they are important species in their native ranges but have also been introduced into other grasslands around the world. In many grasslands around the world, you … Continue reading Fire season and drought influence fire effects on invasive grasses

Southwood Prize 2024: Winner announced for early career researcher award

Journal of Applied Ecology is happy to share that Agostina Torres is the winner of this year’s Southwood Prize! This annual award is given to the best article in the journal by an author at the start of their career. This year, Agostina was selected by the Senior Editors amid an impressive shortlist of 10 articles. Winner: Agostina Torres Research: Inverse priority effects: The order and timing of removal … Continue reading Southwood Prize 2024: Winner announced for early career researcher award

Fredrick Ssali: Associations between Lantana camara and common native species

Shortlisted for the Georgina Mace Prize 2024 Fredrick Ssali discusses his team’s study on the impact the invasive flowering plant Lantana camara has on common native species in western Uganda. About the Research Overview The shortlisted paper “Associations between Lantana camara L. (Verbenaceae) and common native species in an African savanna” is an output of a team of four Ugandan researchers. We explored associations between … Continue reading Fredrick Ssali: Associations between Lantana camara and common native species

Agostina Torres: The order and timing of removal of invasive species influence community reassembly

Shortlisted for the 2024 Southwood Prize Agostina Torres introduces us to her latest research which evaluated the dependence of community reassembly on inverse priority effects by experimentally removing the target invasives in field and mesocosm communities. About the research Overview The study emerged as part of my PhD doctorate. Along with my supervisors, Drs. Martin Nuñez and Mariano Rodriguez-Cabal, we were trying to understand why … Continue reading Agostina Torres: The order and timing of removal of invasive species influence community reassembly

Early detection for invading tree pests: Targeted surveillance and stakeholder perspectives

Vasthi Alonso Chávez discusses how early detection of the emerald ash borer, responsible for the death of millions of ash trees in the United States, Canada, Russia and Eastern Europe, is essential for effective control. The growing volume of trade and travel across continents has accelerated the movement and introduction of pests and pathogens into regions outside their native range causing unprecedented ecological and economic … Continue reading Early detection for invading tree pests: Targeted surveillance and stakeholder perspectives

Detección temprana de plagas invasoras en árboles: Vigilancia optimizada y perspectivas sociológicas

Vasthi Alonso Chávez analiza cómo la detección temprana del barrenador esmeralda del fresno, responsable de la muerte de millones de fresnos en Estados Unidos, Canadá, Rusia y Europa del Este, es esencial para un control efectivo. El creciente volumen global del comercio y movimiento de árboles y sus productos, ha acelerado el transporte e introducción de plagas y enfermedades en regiones fuera de su área … Continue reading Detección temprana de plagas invasoras en árboles: Vigilancia optimizada y perspectivas sociológicas