International Journal of Ecology and Environmental Sciences
Distribution pattern of dominant invasive alien plants in forests of Kumaon region in West Himalaya
Abstract
Present study is an attempt to understand the distribution pattern of five dominant invasive alien plants in forests of the Hat-Kalika watershed in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand, Kumaon Himalaya. The results of the study revealed that among selected five invasive alien plants, only Ageratina adenophora was present in all studied forests with its highest relative density (48%) and relative abundance (22%) in Banj-oak dominated forest. Lantana camara was present in lower elevation forests i.e. Sal and Sal-Pine dominated forest in the region, with maximum relative density (51%) in Sal forest. Bidens pilosa, Erigeron karvinskianus, and Oxalis corniculata showed their highest relative density in Sal-Pine dominated, Banj-Oak, and Mixed broadleaved & conifer forest, respectively. All the species preferred high and medium level of disturbance in the studied forests. The results of the study concludes that A. adenophora, which formed dense populations in all studied forests should be given special attention, to control further infestation of the species in natural forests of the region. Study found that many native plant species have density close to that of invasive alien species. Therefore, these native species should be used to restore the degraded forest areas after attempting eradication of invasive alien plant species, for better forest management.
Keywords
References
Ahmad, M., Uniyal, S.K., and Singh, R.D., 2018. Patterns of alien plant species richness across gradients of altitude: analyses from the Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh. Tropical Ecology, 59(1), 35-43.
Averett, J.P., McCune, B., Parks, C.G., Naylor, B.J., DelCurto, T. and Mata-González, R., 2016. Non-native plant invasion along elevation and canopy closure gradients in a middle Rocky Mountain ecosystem. PloS one, 11(1), p.e0147826.
Bartolome, A.P., Villaseñor, I.M. and Yang, W.C., 2013. Bidens pilosa L.(Asteraceae): botanical properties, traditional uses, phytochemistry, and pharmacology. Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine, 2013.
Bhatt, I.D., Rawat, S., Badhani, A. and Rawal, R.S., 2017. Nutraceutical potential of selected wild edible fruits of the Indian Himalayan region. Food chemistry, 215, 84-91.
Bisht, A.S. and Bhat, A.B., 2013. Vegetational structure and plant diversity relation in a sub-alpine region of Garhwal Himalaya, Uttarakhand India. African Journal of Plant Science, 7(8), 401-406.
CABI., 2020. Datasheet: Erigeron karvinskianus. Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International. https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/114202. Accessed on 11.10.2020.
CABI., 2021. Invasive species compendium. Datasheet: Ageratina adenophora. https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/23243#tosummaryOfInvasiveness. Accessed on 11.08.2021.
Chaudhary, A., Adhikari, B.S., Joshi, N.C., Rawat, and G.S., 2019. Patterns of invasion by crofton weed (Ageratina adenophora) in Kailash sacred landscape region of western Himalaya (India). Environment Conservation Journal, 20(3), 9-17.
Cottam, G. and Curtis, J.T., 1956. The use of distance measures in phytosociological sampling. Ecology, 37(3), 451-460.
Dar, P.A., Reshi, Z.A., and Shah, A.B., 2018. Altitudinal distribution of native and alien plant species along roadsides in Kashmir Himalaya, India. Tropical Ecology, 59(1), 45-55.
Datta, A., Kühn, I., Ahmad, M., Michalski, S., and Auge, H., 2017. Processes affecting altitudinal distribution of invasive Ageratina adenophora in western Himalaya: The role of local adaptation and the importance of different life-cycle stages. PloS one, 12(11), p.e0187708.
Dobhal, P.K., Kohli, R.K. and Batish, D.R., 2010. Evaluation of the impact of Lantana camara L. invasion, on four major woody shrubs, along Nayar river of Pauri Garhwal, in Uttarakhand Himalaya. International Journal of Biodiversity and Conservation, 2(7), 155-161.
Early, R., Bradley, B.A., Dukes, J.S., Lawler, J.J., Olden, J.D., Blumenthal, D.M., Gonzalez, P., Grosholz, E.D., Ibañez, I., Miller, L.P. and Sorte, C.J., 2016. Global threats from invasive alien species in the twenty-first century and national response capacities. Nature communications, 7(1), 1-9.
Groom, Q.J., Van der Straeten, J. and Hoste, I., 2019. The origin of Oxalis corniculata L. PeerJ, 7, p.e6384.
Joshi, G. and Negi, G.C., 2011. Quantification and valuation of forest ecosystem services in the western Himalayan region of India. International Journal of Biodiversity Science, Ecosystem Services & Management, 7(1), 2-11.
Kumar, M., Rajwar, G.S. and Sharma, C.M., 2004. Disturbance and dynamics in a sub-tropical forest of Garhwal Himalaya. Bulletin of the National Institute of Ecology, 14, 43-50.
Lodhiyal, N., Gupta, S., Lodhiyal, L.S., Kapkoti, B. and Bhakuni, N., 2016. Assessment of ecological parameters of crofton weed along the road-side forests of Kumaun Himalaya. Indian Journal of Weed Science, 48(4), 410-416.
Joshi, S.P., 2014. The Role of Habitat Types and Soil Physicochemical Properties in the Spread of a Non Native Shrub Lantana Camara in the Doon Valley, Western Himalaya, India. Journal of Environmental Geography, 7(3-4), 31-42.
Mishra, R., 1968. Ecology Work Book. Oxford and IBH Publishing Co. New Delhi, pp.242.
Mueller-Dombois, D. and Ellenberg, D., 1974. Aims and methods of vegetation ecology. New York: Wiley, pp. 547.
Mungi, N.A., Coops, N.C., Ramesh, K. and Rawat, G.S., 2018. How global climate change and regional disturbance can expand the invasion risk? Case study of Lantana camara invasion in the Himalaya. Biological Invasions, 20(7), 1849-1863.
Muniappan, R., Raman, A., and Reddy, G.V., 2009. Ageratina adenophora (Sprengel) King and Robinson (Asteraceae). Biological control of tropical weeds using arthropods, 63-73.
Murali, K.S., Shankar, U., Shaanker, R.U., Ganeshaiah, K.N. and Bawa, K.S., 1996. Extraction of non-timber forest products in the forests of Biligiri Rangan Hills, India. 2. Impact of NTFP extraction on regeneration, population structure, and species composition. Economic botany, 50(3), 252-269.
Negi, V.S., Joshi, B.C., Pathak, R., Rawal, R.S. and Sekar, K.C., 2018. Assessment of fuelwood diversity and consumption patterns in cold desert part of Indian Himalaya: implication for conservation and quality of life. Journal of Cleaner Production, 196, 23-31.
Pathak, R., Negi, V.S., Rawal, R.S. and Bhatt, I.D., 2019. Alien plant invasion in the Indian Himalayan Region: state of knowledge and research priorities. Biodiversity and Conservation, 28(12), 3073-3102.
Pathak, R., Thakur, S., Negi, V.S., Rawal, R.S., Bahukhandi, A., Durgapal, K., Barola, A., Tewari, D. and Bhatt, I.D., 2021. Ecological condition and management status of Community Forests in Indian western Himalaya. Land Use Policy, 109, p.105636.
Pyšek, P., Pergl, J., Essl, F., Lenzner, B., Dawson, W., Kreft, H., Weigelt, P., Winter, M., Kartesz, J., Nishino, M. and Antonova, L.A., 2017. Naturalized alien flora of the world. Preslia., 89(3), 203-274.
Rahbek, C., 2005. The role of spatial scale and the perception of large‐scale species‐richness patterns. Ecology letters, 8(2), 224-239.
Rawal, R.S., Bhatt, I.D., Sekar, K.C. and Nandi, S.K., 2013. The himalayan biodiversity: richness, representativeness, uniqueness and life-support values. GB Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development (GBPIHED), Kosi-Katarmal, Almora, Uttarakhand, India, pp.84.
Rawal, R.S., Gairola, S., and Dhar, U., 2012. Effects of disturbance intensities on vegetation patterns in oak forests of Kumaun, west Himalaya. Journal of Mountain Science, 9(2), 157-165.
Rawat, B.S., 2013. Changes in vegetation diversity and plant response in Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve over the last two decades. (Ph.D. Thesis, Kumaun University, Nainital, India).
Samant, S.S., Dhar, U., and Palni, L.M.S., 1998. Medicinal plants of Indian Himalaya. Gyanodaya Prakashan, Nainital.
Saxena, A.K., Singh, J.S., 1984. Tree population structure of certain Himalayan forest associations and implications concerning their future composition. Vegetatio, 58(2), 61-69.
Seipel, T., Kueffer, C., Rew, L.J., Daehler, C.C., Pauchard, A., Naylor, B.J., Alexander, J.M., Edwards, P.J., Parks, C.G., Arevalo, J.R. and Cavieres, L.A., 2012. Processes at multiple scales affect richness and similarity of non‐native plant species in mountains around the world. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 21(2), 236-246.
K Chandra, S., 2012. Invasive alien plants of Indian Himalayan region—diversity and implication. American Journal of Plant Sciences, 3(02), 177-184.
Sekar, K.C., Manikandan, R., and Srivastava, S.K., 2012. Invasive alien plants of Uttarakhand Himalaya. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, India Section B: Biological Sciences, 82(3), 375-383.
Shrestha, U.B. and Shrestha, B.B., 2019. Climate change amplifies plant invasion hotspots in Nepal. Diversity and Distributions, 25(10), 1599-1612.
Thapa, L.B., Kaewchumnong, K., Sinkkonen, A., and Sridith, K., 2020. “Soaked in rainwater” effect of Ageratina adenophora on seedling growth and development of native tree species in Nepal. Flora, 263, p.151554.
Thapa, S., Chitale, V., Rijal, S.J., Bisht, N., and Shrestha, B.B., 2018. Understanding the dynamics in distribution of invasive alien plant species under predicted climate change in Western Himalaya. PloS one, 13(4), p.e0195752.
Vilà, M., Espinar, J.L., Hejda, M., Hulme, P.E., Jarošík, V., Maron, J.L., Pergl, J., Schaffner, U., Sun, Y., Pyšek, P., 2011. Ecological impacts of invasive alien plants: a meta‐analysis of their effects on species, communities and ecosystems. Ecology letters, 14(7), 702-708.
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
COPYRIGHT of this Journal vests fully with the National Instional Institute of Ecology. Any commercial use of the content on this site in any form is legally prohibited.