Quantifying the spatial impact of an invasive Acacia on ecosystem functioning using remote sensing
Remote sensing technology is increasingly applied to map the occurrence of invasive plant species, yet its use to map their ecological impact remains limited. Furthermore, invader-induced changes beyond the canopy, as well as the environmental context, are rarely considered. This study aimed to asse...
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Elsevier
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Ecological Indicators |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X24013852 |
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| author | André Große-Stoltenberg Christiane Werner Christine Hellmann Jens Oldeland Jan Thiele |
| author_facet | André Große-Stoltenberg Christiane Werner Christine Hellmann Jens Oldeland Jan Thiele |
| author_sort | André Große-Stoltenberg |
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| description | Remote sensing technology is increasingly applied to map the occurrence of invasive plant species, yet its use to map their ecological impact remains limited. Furthermore, invader-induced changes beyond the canopy, as well as the environmental context, are rarely considered. This study aimed to assess the impacts of an invasive tree on ecosystem functioning at the landscape scale using remote sensing, taking into account both spatial effects and environmental heterogeneity. Specifically, we investigated a coastal Mediterranean dune ecosystem invaded by the N-fixing tree Acacia longifolia (Andrews) Willd. (‘Acacia’). Four vegetation indices were calculated as proxies of ecosystem functions, and these indices were used to compute functional diversity in terms of spectral Rao’s Q for assessing impacts by Acacia based on airborne hyperspectral data. Vegetation cover and topographic indices derived from airborne LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) were used to account for spatial heterogeneity. For seven sites, we employed Generalized Linear Mixed Models to model the effects of environmental variables and Acacia-related variables on proxies of ecosystem functions. Significant impact of the invader was found beyond the invaded area augmenting to 50 % total impact on ecosystem functions. These spatial impacts are particularly prevalent at rather early stages of invasion (∼20 % invader cover at landscape level). Consequently, the impact of invaders is underestimated when spatial effects are ignored, but it is overestimated when environmental heterogeneity is neglected. Furthermore, functional diversity decreases due to invasion, though it reaches its maximum at the edges of invader stands, where Rao’s Q index captures spectral effects of both the invader and the native vegetation. Thus, we highlight that both 2D and 3D remote sensing data complement each other in remote sensing-driven impact assessments. We envision that advancements in remote sensing of ecosystem structure and functioning in terms of increasing availability of high spectral, spatial and temporal data as well as enhanced methods for data analysis will facilitate tracing the context-dependent and function-specific spatial effects of invasive species especially at early stages of invasion to enable timely management. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1470-160X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
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| series | Ecological Indicators |
| spelling | doaj-art-fd61ad1dfd2641b29bac3ae9144251372025-01-31T05:10:17ZengElsevierEcological Indicators1470-160X2025-01-01170112928Quantifying the spatial impact of an invasive Acacia on ecosystem functioning using remote sensingAndré Große-Stoltenberg0Christiane Werner1Christine Hellmann2Jens Oldeland3Jan Thiele4Division of Landscape Ecology and Landscape Planning, iFZ Research Centre for Biosystems, Land Use and Nutrition, Institute of Landscape Ecology and Resource Management, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26-32, 35392 Giessen, Germany; Center for International Development and Environmental Research (ZEU), Justus Liebig University Giessen, Senckenbergstrasse 3, 35390 Giessen, Germany; Corresponding author.Ecosystem Physiology, University of Freiburg, Georges-Köhler-Allee 53/54, 79110 Freiburg, GermanyEcosystem Physiology, University of Freiburg, Georges-Köhler-Allee 53/54, 79110 Freiburg, GermanyInstitute for Globally Distributed Open Research and Education (IGDORE), Burgunderweg 9d, 22453 Hamburg, GermanyThünen Institute of Biodiversity, Bundesallee 65, 38116 Braunschweig, GermanyRemote sensing technology is increasingly applied to map the occurrence of invasive plant species, yet its use to map their ecological impact remains limited. Furthermore, invader-induced changes beyond the canopy, as well as the environmental context, are rarely considered. This study aimed to assess the impacts of an invasive tree on ecosystem functioning at the landscape scale using remote sensing, taking into account both spatial effects and environmental heterogeneity. Specifically, we investigated a coastal Mediterranean dune ecosystem invaded by the N-fixing tree Acacia longifolia (Andrews) Willd. (‘Acacia’). Four vegetation indices were calculated as proxies of ecosystem functions, and these indices were used to compute functional diversity in terms of spectral Rao’s Q for assessing impacts by Acacia based on airborne hyperspectral data. Vegetation cover and topographic indices derived from airborne LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) were used to account for spatial heterogeneity. For seven sites, we employed Generalized Linear Mixed Models to model the effects of environmental variables and Acacia-related variables on proxies of ecosystem functions. Significant impact of the invader was found beyond the invaded area augmenting to 50 % total impact on ecosystem functions. These spatial impacts are particularly prevalent at rather early stages of invasion (∼20 % invader cover at landscape level). Consequently, the impact of invaders is underestimated when spatial effects are ignored, but it is overestimated when environmental heterogeneity is neglected. Furthermore, functional diversity decreases due to invasion, though it reaches its maximum at the edges of invader stands, where Rao’s Q index captures spectral effects of both the invader and the native vegetation. Thus, we highlight that both 2D and 3D remote sensing data complement each other in remote sensing-driven impact assessments. We envision that advancements in remote sensing of ecosystem structure and functioning in terms of increasing availability of high spectral, spatial and temporal data as well as enhanced methods for data analysis will facilitate tracing the context-dependent and function-specific spatial effects of invasive species especially at early stages of invasion to enable timely management.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X24013852Impact assessmentInvasive alien speciesEcosystem functionHyperspectralLiDAREnvironmental heterogeneity |
| spellingShingle | André Große-Stoltenberg Christiane Werner Christine Hellmann Jens Oldeland Jan Thiele Quantifying the spatial impact of an invasive Acacia on ecosystem functioning using remote sensing Ecological Indicators Impact assessment Invasive alien species Ecosystem function Hyperspectral LiDAR Environmental heterogeneity |
| title | Quantifying the spatial impact of an invasive Acacia on ecosystem functioning using remote sensing |
| title_full | Quantifying the spatial impact of an invasive Acacia on ecosystem functioning using remote sensing |
| title_fullStr | Quantifying the spatial impact of an invasive Acacia on ecosystem functioning using remote sensing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Quantifying the spatial impact of an invasive Acacia on ecosystem functioning using remote sensing |
| title_short | Quantifying the spatial impact of an invasive Acacia on ecosystem functioning using remote sensing |
| title_sort | quantifying the spatial impact of an invasive acacia on ecosystem functioning using remote sensing |
| topic | Impact assessment Invasive alien species Ecosystem function Hyperspectral LiDAR Environmental heterogeneity |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X24013852 |
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