2025/10/23 by Madhav P. Thakur, Zhizhuang Gu, Mark van Kleunen +1 · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Environmental Science · #Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies #Plant and animal studies #Species Distribution and Climate Change
paper · doi:10.1126/science.adq3101
openalex publication_date 2025/10/23 · openalex created_date 2025/10/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/26
Biological invasions can alter ecosystems, yet their impacts vary across ecological contexts. Using a global meta-analysis of 775 studies (2223 effect sizes) in terrestrial systems, we show that the most consistent negative impacts are reductions in native plant diversity caused by invasive plants and increases in greenhouse gas emissions driven by both invasive plants and animals. However, evidence of publication bias suggests the latter should be interpreted with caution. Invader residence time emerged as a key predictor: Longer residence times intensified the negative effects of invasive plants on native diversity, whereas impacts on soil abiotic properties tended to weaken over time. Our synthesis reveals that some properties, such as native plant diversity, remain persistently sensitive to invasion, whereas others are more variable as invasions persist.