TRANSRESSOLID

Transcontinental research on a highly invasive plant species Solidago gigantea - Ecology and evolution in the native and introduced ranges

 Partecipanti

Mappa

 Word cloud

Esplora la "nuvola delle parole (Word Cloud) per avere un'idea di massima del progetto.

 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'Exotic invasions provide an unparalleled opportunity for a deeper understanding of the most fundamental question in ecology – what controls the distribution and abundance of organisms? Understanding the mechanisms that enable successful exotics to change from minor components of their native communities to dominants in recipient communities is only possible through biogeographical approaches. The fundamental objective of this proposal is to use a transcontinental approach to study one of Europe’s most noxious plant invaders which originated from North America. By placing a primary emphasis on this novel approach the project encompasses a wide range of cutting-edge research directions that exploit the invasive success of Solidago gigantea. Phenotypic plasticity, genetic background, effects of soil biota and natural enemies, allelopathy, and impact on vegetation will be investigated in the native and in the invaded range. As a result of a multidisciplinary approach important genetic and environmental factors which permit rapid evolution in the case of invasive weeds will be disentangled. This will be one of the first comprehensive field examinations of the behaviour of invasive populations in the native range and non invasive populations in the invaded range. Solidago gigantea and other invasive species are a serious threat for agricultural production, biodiversity and at the same time for human health. The results of the proposed project could provide recommendations for control methods and the applied transcontinental approach of the study can change the viewpoint of future studies with invasive species.'

Introduzione (Teaser)

A transcontinental research project is investigating the factors that allowed an aggressive North American plant species to successfully invade Europe.

Descrizione progetto (Article)

Invasive plants are responsible for widespread loss of biodiversity, compromised agricultural productivity and sometimes even human health. Understanding the mechanisms that enable invasive plants to become so successful in their new ranges will have long-reaching, worldwide benefits.

The EU-funded TRANSRESSOLID (Transcontinental research on a highly invasive plant species Solidago gigantea - Ecology and evolution in the native and introduced ranges) project is studying Solidago gigantea (giant goldenrod), a North American plant, to better understand how it has been such a successful invader in Europe.

Researchers study how invasive and native populations of the plant influence species richness and diversity in natural habitats in both ranges. In controlled greenhouses and common gardens they also tested differences between invasive and native populations in competitiveness, herbivory tolerance, the effects of soil biota, allelopathy and genetics. They also are testing and comparing different control methods to fight the invader.

TRANSRESSOLID has found that S. gigantea significantly decreased species richness in natural habitats in Europe, while no such effect was found in North America. In the greenhouse invasive and native populations did not differ in their competitive ability, but significant difference was found between the populations of different elevation origin.

European plants had a higher herbivory tolerance, a higher mycorrhizal activity, and stronger allelopathic effect than North Americans. European plants grew bigger in Europe, however, they were not bigger than their North American counterparts when grown in the native range in North America.

Researchers also found that short-term control of S. gigantea populations mainly affect fitness and viability of the invader, while long-term control have stronger structural effects by increasing species diversity.

When complete, this project will help researchers to understand how invasive plants like S. gigantea can invade so successfully. The research will have a significant impact on nature conservation and agriculture globally.