A Review on Some Ecological Aspects of Invasive Flora Based on Comparative Analysis of “Tehri” and “Pauri” Garhwal, Uttarakhand, India

Abstract

The establishment of invasive plants in a particular area leads to significant ecological changes on the native species of that area, alters ecosystem services and is one of the major drivers of biodiversity loss. In recent years, invasion by alien plants in the hilly regions has posed a severe threat to the ecosystem of these areas. A review was made in this context to study the Invasive Alien Plant Species (IAPS) of “Tehri” and “Pauri” districts. Large number of invasive alien plants was identified under different genera and families from both the study areas. Based on the growth form of invasive plants, herbs contributed the maximum percentage. Asteraceae was found to be dominating over other families followed by Solanaceae. The native range indicated differences in nativity of invasive flora found in Tehri and Pauri with a large percentage of invasive plants coming from Asia (23%) and Tropical America (26%) and respectively. It was observed that invasive plants are invading higher elevation zones which parallels with the directional filtering theory. Due to higher proliferation rates outside their native range and absence of natural predators, it is quite difficult to control this increasing expansion of invasive plants which is a call for concern and needs immediate attention. Keywords: Invasive alien plant species (IAPS), Ecosystem services, Native species, Biodiversity, Directional filtering .