PREDICTING SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF WORLD’S WORST INVASIVE PLANT SPECIES WITH MAXIMUM ENTROPY MODELS FOR INVASIVE PLANT SPECIES CONTROL AND BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION

Abstract

This study focused on 29 terrestrial plant species from World's Worst Invasive Species list. Using occurrence only datasets, Maximum Entropy models were trained to predict environmental suitability of selected species on the global level under current and future climate conditions. Environmental suitability of all species was compiled and potential hotspots for future plant invasions were identified. The results showed that almost all invasion hotspots locate in areas encompassing multiple countries, highlighting the necessity for cross-border cooperation. High degrees of spatial overlaps were also found between invasion hotspots and biodiversity hotspots.