Publications by authors named "Lara Volery"
Invasive alien species are a major driver of global change, impacting biodiversity, ecosystem services, and human livelihoods. To document these impacts, we present the Global Impacts Dataset of Invasive Alien Species (GIDIAS), a dataset on the positive, negative and neutral impacts of invasive alien species on nature, nature's contributions to people, and good quality of life. This dataset arises from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services' (IPBES) thematic assessment report of this topic.
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- - Biodiversity loss is accelerating due to human activities, making it essential to measure the impacts of various environmental stressors accurately and consistently.
- - A new framework has been developed to help quantify these impacts by examining biodiversity in affected areas versus unaffected reference points while considering changes over time.
- - This framework aims to address important questions in ecology, like comparing impacts from different stressors, understanding their interactions, and evaluating the effectiveness of conservation efforts over time.
Article Synopsis
- Community science fosters public engagement in research, enhancing education and awareness around important issues like biodiversity, particularly concerning alien species.
- While beneficial, uncertainties in study design, data collection, and communication can hinder project success, impacting the reliability of findings.
- The text outlines methods to reduce these uncertainties and provides practical recommendations to improve community science outcomes, critical for monitoring novel alien species effectively.
Article Synopsis
- Alien species, introduced by humans outside their native habitats, can negatively impact global biodiversity, leading to the need for standardized assessments like the IUCN EICAT.
- While EICAT focuses on the negative effects, alien species can also have positive impacts, such as providing food or habitat, but there was no established system to measure these benefits.
- To address this, the proposed EICAT+ framework categorizes positive impacts through five scenarios and helps enhance our understanding of biological invasions, aiding in better conservation strategies.
Article Synopsis
- To efficiently manage alien species, prioritization should focus on the most damaging species, which varies depending on their specific impacts in different environments.* -
- The Environmental Impact Classification of Alien Taxa (EICAT) helps compare harmful effects of alien species on native wildlife, categorizing impacts from negligible to irreversible extinction.* -
- The study assessed 27 alien ungulate species, finding that most cause significant harm to native populations, with certain species like mouflon and dromedary posing a greater risk of local extinction, thus refining management strategies.*