From West to East and back again – Trans-Siberian Railway as a continental pathway of plant invasions
| Name: | From West to East and back again – Trans-Siberian Railway as a continental pathway of plant invasions |
|---|---|
| Researchers: |
Pergl Jan (researcher) Moravcová Lenka (member in research team) Kutlvašr Josef (member in research team) Chrtek Jindřich (member in research team) Sádlo Jiří (member in research team) Pyšek Petr (member in research team) Perglová Irena (member in research team) |
| Provider: | Grantová agentura ČR |
| Number: | 20-10349J |
| Realization from: | 2020 |
| Realization to: | 2022 |
| Summary: | The rapid increase of invasions worldwide is associated with the increase and expansion of trade and transport, and access to new source species pools. The proposed project will contribute to (i) understanding the role of human-mediated pathways (based on the model system of Trans-Siberian railway, TSR) in translocating plant species, (ii) elucidating the biogeographic patterns of their spread and (iii) predicting the invasion risk of alien species along TSR in the future. TSR spans across Eurasia and connects two continents with differing native species pools and is the only transport corridor for terrestrial plants. Therefore, this provides a unique study system for analysing the spread of alien plants across a large scale. The project consists of four work packages focused on (i) floristic inventory along TSR, (ii) analysis of species traits, (iii) analysis of transported material and associated species, and (iv) developing scenarios of future invasions and horizon scanning for aliens along TSR. |