A preliminary assessment of the presence and distribution of invasive and potentially invasive alien plant species in Laikipia County, Kenya, a biodiversity hotspot

Abstract

Invasive alien species are those plants and animals that have been introduced by people, either intentionally or unintentionally, outside of their natural range or outside of their natural dispersal potential, and are destructive to the environment in which they have established and proliferated (UNEP 2002; Witt & Luke 2017). Invasive alien species (plants and animals) pose a significant threat to biodiversity (Pyšek et al. 2012; Randall 1996; Vilà et al. 2011). For example, a global meta-analysis by Vilà et al. (2011) found that invasive plants decrease native plant species diversity and abundance. These plant invasions may have cascading trophic effects (Bailey, Schweitzer & Whitham 2001; Sakai et al. 2001; Valentine, Roberts & Schwartzkopf 2007) by decreasing animal fitness and abundance (Vilà et al. 2011). This is especially an issue for protected areas where the primary goal is biodiversity conservation (eds. Foxcroft et al. 2013; Funk & Vitousek 2007; Hobbs & Humphries 1995).