Forestry Department - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations


Forest Health & Biosecurity Working Papers

The status of invasiveness of forest tree species outside their natural habitat: a global review and discussion paper

by
K.A. Haysom and S.T. Murphy
CABI Bioscience
December 2003







Forest Resources Development Service Working Paper FBS/3E
Forest Resources Division FAO, Rome, Italy
Forestry Department


Disclaimer

The FAO Forestry Department Working Papers report on issues and activities related to the assessment, protection and sustainable management of forest resources. The purpose of these papers is to provide early information on on-going activities and programmes, and to stimulate discussion.

This paper is one of a series of FAO documents on forest-related health and biosecurity issues. The study was carried out in March 2003, and was financially supported by the FAO-Netherlands Partnership Programme on Agro-Biodiversity.

The authors would like to thank the organizers and members of the international Aliens-L list server; individuals and organizations listed in Appendix 2; and Paul Kirk, Craig Tarft, Louise Fulham, Gretel White, Jo Bunner, Rebecca Murphy and Tom Ings, for their contribution to this study.

The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

Quantitative information has been compiled according to sources, methodologies and protocols identified and selected by the authors. For standardized forest inventory methodologies and assessments on forest resources, please refer to FAO, 2003. State of the World’s Forests 2003; and to FAO, 2001. Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000 (FRA 2000). FAO Forestry Paper No 140.

Official information can also be found at the FAO Internet site http://www.fao.org/forestry/forestry.asp.

Comments and feedback are welcome.

For further information please contact:

Pierre Sigaud,
Forestry Officer (Forest Genetic Resources)

Forest Resources Division
Forestry Department
FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla
00100 Rome, Italy
Fax: + 39 06 570 55 137
Email: [email protected]

Gillian Allard,
Forestry Officer (Forest Health)

Forest Resources Division
Forestry Department
FAO, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla
00100 Rome, Italy
Fax: + 39 06 570 55 137
Email: [email protected]

For citation:

Haysom, K.A. and Murphy, S.T. 2003.The status of invasiveness of forest tree species outside their natural habitat: a global review and discussion paper. Forest Health and Biosecurity Working Paper FBS/3E. Forestry Department. FAO, Rome (unpublished).

© FAO 2003


Contents


EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. INTRODUCTION
1.1. Background and objectives
1.2. Forestry and agroforestry in a global context
1.3. Definitions

2. METHODOLOGY
2.1. Data collection and management
2.2. Working definitions

3. STATUS OF INVASIVENESS OF EXOTIC TREE SPECIES IN FORESTRY
3.1. General characterization of the dataset
3.2. Invasive trees according to category of economic use
3.3. Taxonomic characterization of the dataset
3.4. Geographic characterization of the dataset

3.5. Invasiveness in relation to time since introduction
3.6. Invasiveness in relation to scale of planting
3.7. Invasiveness in relation to biological characteristics
3.8. Discussion

4. EFFECTS OF INVASIVE FOREST TREES
4.1. Positive effects resulting from the invasiveness of exotic trees
4.2. Negative effects resulting from the invasiveness of exotic trees

4.3. Awareness and conflicts of interest

5. TREE INVASIONS: A SPECIES OR LANDSCAPE PHENOMENON?
5.1. Previous studies on the “basis” of invasiveness
5.2. Case study: evaluation of Acacia and Prosopis

6. PREVENTION, CONTROL AND MANAGEMENT: A BIOSECURITY PERSPECTIVE

6.1. Preventative measures and monitoring

6.2. Control and management measures

6.3. Management in the context of conflicts of interest

7. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

REFERENCES

APPENDICES
1. Literature review: sources and approach
2. Verification of taxonomic information
3. Classification of species by economic use

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