Environmental niche and functional role similarity between invasive and native palms in the Atlantic Forest.

ABSTRACT: Invasive species can significantly affect native species when their niches are similar. Ecological and morphological similarities between the invasive Australian palm, Archontophoenix cunninghamiana, and the native palm from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, Euterpe edulis, suggest that they have similar environmental requirements and functional roles (i.e., the function a species performs in an ecosystem). This similarity raises concerns about how the invasive palm could impact the native species in the present and future. We used spatial (species occurrences) and ecological information (frugivory events) to characterize the environmental niche and functional role of the two palms and assess their overlap. In addition, we predicted the potential area of occurrence of each palm

SUBMITTER: Bello C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7900028 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature