The impacts of biological invasions

The Anthropocene is characterised by a continuous human-mediated reshuffling of the distributions of species globally. Both intentional and unintentional introductions have resulted in numerous species being translocated beyond their native ranges, often leading to their establishment and subsequent spread - a process referred to as biological invasion. Biological invasions are associated with profound changes in the composition, structure, and functioning of recipient ecosystems, plus substantial financial losses and disruptions to society, culture, and human well-being. These ecological, economic, and socio-cultural impacts are interrelated, ubiquitous, and detrimental, yet they are often subjectively perceived or inaccurately quantified. Persistent knowledge gaps remain, however, which limit our understanding of the complex and multifaceted causes and mechanisms of invasion impacts. To overcome these gaps and comprehensively capture all related facets pertaining to the nature and diversity of invasion impact, this scoping review of academic studies, grey literature, and expert reports provides a conceptual model for interpreting invasion impacts, structured around three interrelated pillars: impact domains, challenges in the study of impacts, and available risk- and impact assessments. We initially explore the various mechanisms and consequences of ecological, economic, and socio-cultural invasion impacts and their temporal dynamics, substantiating these with relevant empirical examples. We then review common challenges and fallacies in studying invasion impacts, including context specificity and inter-comparability of impact magnitudes, challenges associated with quantifying non-ecological impacts, and research biases, before synthesising how risks are analysed and impacts assessed, and how these assessments ultimately inform management decisions. Our review underscores the multifaceted and complex nature of invasion impacts, and that effectively addressing biological invasions requires more than isolated, reactive interventions; it calls for globally coordinated, proactive action underpinned by reliable scientific knowledge, sincere political commitment, and broad public engagement. Drawing on nearly a century of literature and global expert contributions, this work offers a comprehensive, nuanced, and timely overview of the potential consequences of biological invasions, providing a valuable foundation for informing future research directions, management interventions, and policy development.

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Publication Details

Journal
Biological reviews/Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society
Published
2025-12-30
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/brv.70124
Citations
4
Primary Topic
Conservation, Ecology, Wildlife Education
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
9.69
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article

The impacts of biological invasions

Irene Martín‐Forés, Neil Angelo S. Abreo, O Morissette, Martín A. Núñez et al.
4 citations
Biological reviews/Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society
Conservation, Ecology, Wildlife Education
9.69
article

The impacts of biological invasions

Irene Martín‐Forés, Neil Angelo S. Abreo, O Morissette, Martín A. Núñez, Dagmara Błońska, Romina D. Dimarco, Hugo Verreycken, Jamie Bojko, Victor Deklerck, Riccardo Scalerà, Natalia Kirichenko, Irmak KURTUL, Ismael Reyes Soto, Phillip Joschka Haubrock, Giuseppe Castaldelli, Ben Parker, Victoria Dominguez Almela, Ronaldo Sousa, Diederik Strubbe, Julian D. Olden, Elizabeta Briski, Stelios Katsanevakis, Tim Adriaens, Antonín Kouba, Teun Everts, Stefano Mammola, James E. Byers, Bruno Eleres Soares, Rein Brys, Jaimie T.A. Dick, Melina Kourantidou, Ali Serhan Tarkan, Jakub Truszkowski, James W. E. Dickey, J. Robert Britton, Marc Kenis, Ana Clara S. Franco, Lorenzo Vilizzi, Paride Balzani, Carlos Cano‐Barbacil, Margarita Florencio, Emili García‐Berthou, Amy L. Burgess
article en
4 citations

Abstract

The Anthropocene is characterised by a continuous human-mediated reshuffling of the distributions of species globally. Both intentional and unintentional introductions have resulted in numerous species being translocated beyond their native ranges, often leading to their establishment and subsequent spread - a process referred to as biological invasion. Biological invasions are associated with profound changes in the composition, structure, and functioning of recipient ecosystems, plus substantial financial losses and disruptions to society, culture, and human well-being. These ecological, economic, and socio-cultural impacts are interrelated, ubiquitous, and detrimental, yet they are often subjectively perceived or inaccurately quantified. Persistent knowledge gaps remain, however, which limit our understanding of the complex and multifaceted causes and mechanisms of invasion impacts. To overcome these gaps and comprehensively capture all related facets pertaining to the nature and diversity of invasion impact, this scoping review of academic studies, grey literature, and expert reports provides a conceptual model for interpreting invasion impacts, structured around three interrelated pillars: impact domains, challenges in the study of impacts, and available risk- and impact assessments. We initially explore the various mechanisms and consequences of ecological, economic, and socio-cultural invasion impacts and their temporal dynamics, substantiating these with relevant empirical examples. We then review common challenges and fallacies in studying invasion impacts, including context specificity and inter-comparability of impact magnitudes, challenges associated with quantifying non-ecological impacts, and research biases, before synthesising how risks are analysed and impacts assessed, and how these assessments ultimately inform management decisions. Our review underscores the multifaceted and complex nature of invasion impacts, and that effectively addressing biological invasions requires more than isolated, reactive interventions; it calls for globally coordinated, proactive action underpinned by reliable scientific knowledge, sincere political commitment, and broad public engagement. Drawing on nearly a century of literature and global expert contributions, this work offers a comprehensive, nuanced, and timely overview of the potential consequences of biological invasions, providing a valuable foundation for informing future research directions, management interventions, and policy development.

Biological reviews/Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society
Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (CA), Queen's University Belfast (GB), Meise Botanic Garden (BE), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), Ifremer (FR), Université de Bretagne Occidentale (FR), University of Georgia (US), University of Southern Denmark (DK), University of Regina (CA), University of Ferrara (IT), University of Washington (US), Research Institute for Nature and Forest (BE), University of the Philippines Mindanao (PH), University of Exeter (GB), Universitat de Girona (ES), Marconi University (IT), University College South Denmark (DK), University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice (CZ), Ghent University (BE), University of Łódź (PL), GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (DE), Ege University (TR), Estación Biológica de Doñana (ES), Slovenian Forestry Institute (SI), Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (ES), HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research (HU), Finnish Museum of Natural History (FI), Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (AU), National Center for Epidemiology (HU), South Bohemia research center of aquaculture and biodiversity of hydrocenoses (CZ), National Research Council (IT), Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer (FR), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (FR), CABI Switzerland (CH), University of Southampton (GB), University of Houston (US), Sukachev Institute of Forest (RU), Siberian Federal University (RU), The University of Adelaide (AU), Chalmers University of Technology (SE), Muğla University (TR), Teesside University (GB), University of Palermo (IT), Bournemouth University (GB), University of the Aegean (GR), KU Leuven (BE), University of Minho (PT)
Openalex Percentile: Top 2%
Conservation, Ecology, Wildlife Education
9.69
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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