Inducing biological resistance to invasive plants with adapted native species

Abstract

Invasive plants often benefit from a change in eco-evolutionary context, escaping the herbivores, pathogens, and competing plants from their native range. Introduced into naïve native communities, invasive plants can spread rapidly, threatening native plant diversity and ecosystem functioning. Increasingly, studies have shown that native species sometimes adapt in response to the selection pressures imposed by an invasive plant. While researchers have periodically suggested using adapted native species in the management of invasive plants, the idea generally has not found its way to the field. Here, we (1) compare the concept to the more established practices of assisted migration, classic biological control, and microbiome engineering; (2) discuss some of the hurdles to practical implementation; and (3) outline directions for further research that would help expose the role of native adaptations in shaping the trajectory of plant invasions.