Hélia Marchante

Instituto Politécnico de Coimbra - Escola Superior Agrária · Centre for Functional Ecology - Science for People & the Planet

Biological control (BC) of invasive alien plants (IAP) can be an effective environmental management approach. It has only very recently been adopted in Europe and is underutilized compared to other continents where this method has been successfully implemented for over a century. This is in sharp contrast to the BC of invertebrate pests, which has...

Conservation of biodiversity in protected areas is often threatened by invasive alien plants (IAPs), and its successful management requires proper planning, resources, and monitoring to adjust future interventions. Although follow-up controls and evaluation of different management actions through monitoring programs are crucial in an adaptive manag...

In the context of global change, the integration of non-native tree (NNT) species into European forestry is increasingly being discussed. The ecological consequences of increasing use or spread of NNTs in European forests are highly uncertain, as the scientific evidence is either constraint to results from case studies with limited spatial extent,...

Acacia dealbata and A. mearnsii are two invasive species found in coastal, mountain, and riparian Mediterranean habitats. Seed biology and germination traits are important drivers of the competitive performance of plants and may significantly contribute to biological invasions. The seeds of Acacia s.l. have physical dormancy due to an impermeable e...

Classical biocontrol is key for the successful management of invasive alien plants; yet, it is still relatively new in Europe. Although post-release monitoring is essential to evaluate the effectiveness of a biocontrol agent, it is often neglected. This study reports the detailed post-release monitoring of the first biocontrol agent intentionally i...

Increasing public awareness is a prerequisite for successful management of invasive alien species (IAS). Environmental education can play an important role in this process by providing relevant learning outcomes and experiences for youth and students, as well as professionals in different sectors associated with introduction pathways or who are inv...

Biological invasions are among the major contemporary threats to biodiversity. Biocontrol has a long history as a safe and effective strategy for the control of invasive species in several world regions, yet the life history and ecological requirements of biocontrol agents are often poorly understood. Species distribution models and assessments of...

Biodiversity is severely declining worldwide and one of its main threats is invasion by exotic species. Successful management of these species requires citizens to be aware and engaged to prevent new introductions and support control interventions. We used questionnaires to investigate the knowledge and perceptions of Portuguese citizens aware of e...

Several Australian and African Acacia shrubs and trees have been intentionally introduced into the Mediterranean basin for different purposes, but some species become invasive, such as Vachellia karroo (Hayne) Banfi and Galasso (syn. Acacia karroo) (Fabales: Fabaceae). The seed beetles, belonging to family Bruchidae, have a significant ecological a...

Knowledge of invasive alien plant (IAP) ecology and plant community succession (synphytosociology) is crucial for successful restoration and prevention of (re)invasions; nevertheless, these two fields are rarely combined. Our case study aims to demonstrate how they can be integrated, by analysing the variation of IAP distribution within biogeograph...

The family Cactaceae Juss. contains some of the most widespread and damaging invasive alien plant species in the world, with Australia (39 species), South Africa (35) and Spain (24) being the main hotspots of invasion. The Global Cactus Working Group (IOBC GCWG) was launched in 2015 to improve international collaboration and identify key actions th...

Despite growing evidence that many invasive plants have impacts at soil level, it is less clear how these changes affect the recovery of invaded systems after their removal.Acacia longifolia is an invasive species in coastal areas around the world; it modifies soil properties and forms a thick layer of litter that can hinder the recovery of native...

Plant galls sustain diverse and complex communities of gallers, parasitoids and inquilines that provide exceptional systems to explore evolutionary, ecological and conservation questions. However, the structure and phenology of such communities are still largely unknown. In order to fill these gaps, we sampled plant galls along the Portuguese coast...

With the rapid expansion of invasive alien plants (IAPs), accurate and timely distribution data is increasingly critical to successful management. However , it is not easy for researchers/technicians to obtain data for all IAPs and territories. In this context, data collected by Citizen Science Platforms can be a useful tool, complementing professi...

Non-native tree (NNT) species have been transported worldwide to create or enhance services that are fundamental for human well-being, such as timber provision, erosion control or ornamental value; yet NNTs can also produce undesired effects, such as fire proneness or pollen allergenicity. Despite the variety of effects that NNTs have on multiple e...

Invasion by the Australian Acacia longifolia has significantly altered the characteristics of both vegetation and soil of Portuguese coastal dunes, including the accumulation of a thick litter layer. Although many aspects of impacts by this species in invaded dunes are known, decomposition of the litter is not well studied, but this can be crucial...

Standardized tools are needed to identify and prioritize the most harmful non-native species (NNS). A plethora of assessment protocols have been developed to evaluate the current and potential impacts of non-native species, but consistency among them has received limited attention. To estimate the consistency across impact assessment protocols, 89...

Alien plant species have been essential for farming and agro-forestry systems and for their supply of food, fiber, tannins, resins or wood from antiquity to the present. They also contributed to supporting functions and regulating services (water, soil, biodiversity) and to the design of landscapes with high cultural and scenic value. Some of those...

Acacia longifolia subsp. longifolia is native to South-eastern Australia and has naturalised in many regions across the globe, including in Portugal, Spain, and South Africa invading extensive areas. Prolific seed production and a long-lived seedbank are considered key factors that enhance its invasiveness. Yet, the effects of different factors on...

Non-native tree species are widely used in forest plantations and agroforestry systems worldwide for their often-high productivity and performance compared to native trees. In addition, they have been and are introduced and used for multiple reasons, such as gardening, protective functions, arboreta, erosion control and for increasing the forest ar...

Invasive alien species are a major driver of global environmental change and a range of management interventions are needed to manage their effects on biodiversity, ecosystem services, human well-being and local livelihoods. Stakeholder engagement is widely advocated to integrate diverse knowledge and perspectives in the management of invasive spec...

Depois de ultrapassadas as etapas iniciais do processo de invasão existem várias estratégias de gestão: erradicação, contenção, diferentes tipos de controlo e mitigação. Associado a qualquer destas opções é essencial considerar a monitorização dos resultados e, eventualmente, ações de restauro do sistema. Em Portugal, ainda que existam exemplos das...

Tendo em conta os impactes económicos, ecológicos e sociais das espécies invasoras já dispersas no território nacional é crucial um forte investimento para prevenir a entrada de novas espécies (potencialmente) invasoras e detetar precocemente novos focos de invasão de forma a promover uma gestão eficaz e atempada que limite novas invasões biológica...

Biological control of weeds is a globally-recognised approach to the management of some of the most troublesome invasive plants in the world. Accidental introductions of agents accounted for all weed biological control agent establishments in the European Union until 2010, but these examples include some current or emerging control successes both l...

"In order to obtain proof of rodents using the studied seeds we used camera traps. Camera traps were placed in six locations inside an Eucalyptus globulus stand, from 17:00 to 10:00 the following day." See the description in the video. Check the study for more details: https://www.web-ecol.net/18/67/2018/

Plantations of Eucalyptus globulus Labill. have been expanding rapidly worldwide. The species is considered invasive in several regions. While in the native range, post-dispersal seed predation is known to severely limit eucalypt recruitment, there is no experimental evidence of seed predation in the introduced range. We hypothesised that E. globul...

Un problema habitual en los estudios de zoología y ecología es la evaluación parcial de la distribución espacial actual de muchas especies, pues subestima su distribución real al estar basada en los registros de naturalistas y de museos. Aunque esta limitación puede ser parcialmente resuelta por medio de diferentes herramientas (p.e. modelos de dis...

Portugal é um país com um elevado número de incêndios rurais o que resulta, em alguns anos, em áreas ardidas de grandes dimensões. A existência de extensas manchas contínuas de monoculturas florestais e de matos, as atividades pastoris que persistem e o abandono dos territórios pelas populações muito têm contribuído para o aumento da área ardida, e...

Invasion by alien species is a worldwide phenomenon with negative consequences at both natural and production areas. Acacia longifolia is an invasive shrub/small tree well known for its negative ecological impacts in several places around the world. The recent introduction of a biocontrol agent (Trichilogaster acaciaelongifoliae), an Australian bud...

Random Forest supervised classification results for PF1 and PF2.

Variable importance as identified by the supervised Random Forest classification. Blue band was generally the most important variable for the classifier which can be interpreted as a result of yellow (high red/green vs. low blue color).

Random Forest supervised classification results for SD1 and SD2.

Random Forest supervised classification results for SD3.

Flower cover per m2 for SD1 and SD2.

Example of flower visibility during the flowering (a) and fructification (b) seasons. Areas dominated by A. longifolia can be visually identified during both seasons, but are more clearly detected during the flowering period.

Flower cover per m2 for SD4 and SD5.

Flower cover per m2 for PF1 and PF2.

Random Forest supervised classification results for SD4 and SD5.

Flower cover per m2 for SD3.

Limitations in the assessment of cultural ecosystem services through quantifiable approaches have constrained our knowledge of how these services can be altered by drivers of global change, such as non-native tree species. Here, we address this caveat by evaluating the effects of non-native tree species, in comparison to native ones, on several cat...

Acacia dealbata is an invasive south-eastern Australian tree that produces a persistent soil seed bank. In order to characterize the seed bank in plots invaded by A. dealbata and to understand its implications for management and re-invasion risk, density, germinability, and viability of the seed bank were evaluated in five sites in central Portugal...

Biological control of weeds is a globally recognised approach to the management of some of the most troublesome invasive plants in the world. Accidental introductions of agents accounted for all weed biological control agent establishments in the European Union until 2010, but these examples include some current or emerging control successes both l...

Porque nasceu galhas.pt?

Biological invasions by Invasive Alien Species (IAS) are not only one of the greatest threats to biodiversity and ecosystems functioning worldwide but also a potential health hazard for humans, with extensive economical costs with EU estimating up to 12 Billion € per year. Reducing costs and increasing the efficiency of IAS monitoring is vital for...

Biological invasions are a major threat to biodiversity and as such understanding their impacts is a priority. Ecological networks provide a valuable tool to explore such impacts at the community level, and are particularly insightful for biocontrol programs, including the potential for their seldom evaluated indirect non-target effects. Acacia long...

Biological invasions are a major threat to biodiversity and as such understanding their impacts is a priority. Ecological networks provide a valuable tool to explore such impacts at the community level, and are particularly insightful for biocontrol programs, including the potential for their seldom evaluated indirect non-target effects. Acacia long...

A case study that explores how selected invasive alien plants distribution varies with biogeography in the south of Portugal.

Biological invasions are a major threat to biodiversity and as such understanding their impacts is a priority. Ecological networks provide a valuable tool to explore such impacts at the community level, and are particularly insightful for biocontrol programs, including the potential for their seldom evaluated indirect non-target effects. Acacia lon...

Biological invasions are a major threat to biodiversity and as such understanding their impacts is a priority. Ecological networks provide a valuable tool to explore such impacts at the community level, and are particularly insightful for biocontrol programs, including the potential for their seldom evaluated indirect non-target effects. Acacia lon...

Presentation for EMAPI 2017

Symposia presentation (please contact the first author for .ppt version for the animations).

Baccharis spicata, a species native to South America, was reported for the first time with-in European territory in 2015. A couple of naturalized populations were detected in the surroundings of Porto suspected of being unintentionally introduced with goods arriving through the harbor of Leixões. A recent risk assessment using two types of protocol...

Biodiversity is threatened by different factors, including invasive alien plants (IAP). The proliferation of IAP as well as other changes in land-use and land-management contributes to the homogenization of ecosystems, promoting environmental, economic and social impacts. Environmental issues are currently a major concern to various sectors of soci...

Invasion by alien species is a worldwide phenomenon with negative consequences at both natural and production areas. Acacia longifolia is an invasive tree with a long track of economic and ecological impacts. The recent release of a biocontrol agent in Portugal, to prevent flowering of A. longifolia represents a major advance on the control of the...

Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) can provide an ideal low-cost, highly customizable solution for very high resolution mapping of invasive alien plants (IAP). UAS also provide very high resolution canopy height models and allow to extract/predict various structural parameters, thus providing previously unachievable data for management.This research pre...

Acacia longifolia is one of the most widespread invasive plants in coastal areas of Portugal, where it disrupts the composition and function of natural plant and insect communities as well as microorganisms in the soil. The Australian bud-galling wasp, Trichilogaster acaciaelongifoliae, induces a reduction in seed production of A. longifolia and ha...

WebMapping and citizen science are increasing their importance as tools both in science communication and in gathering abundant data. Nevertheless, gathering good and plentiful data from citizens when the scientific theme is unknown to them is a demanding challenge. Invasoras.pt is a science communication endeavor that targets the general public an...

Biological invasions are a major threat to biodiversity and as such understanding their impacts is a research priority. Ecological networks provide a valuable tool to explore such impacts at the community level, and can be particularly insightful for planning and monitoring biocontrol programmes, including the potential for their seldom evaluated i...

Biological invasions are a major threat to biodiversity and as such understanding their impacts is a research priority. Ecological networks provide a valuable tool to explore such impacts at the community level, and can be particularly insightful for planning and monitoring biocontrol programmes, including the potential for their seldom evaluated i...

Background Attention has recently been drawn to the issue of transboundary invasions, where species introduced and naturalized in one country cross international borders and become problematic in neighbouring countries. Robust modelling frameworks, able to identify the environmental drivers of invasion and forecast the current and future potential...