Abstract
Climate change represents a planetary emergency that is exacerbating the loss of native biodiversity. In response, efforts promoting climate change adaptation strategies that improve ecosystem resilience and/or mitigate climate impacts are paramount. Invasive Alien Species are a key threat to islands globally, where strategies such as preventing establishment (biosecurity), and eradication, especially invasive mammals, have proven effective for reducing native biodiversity loss and can also advance ecosystem resilience and create refugia for native species at risk from climate change. Furthermore, there is growing evidence that successful eradications may also contribute to mitigating climate change. Given the cross-sector potential for eradications to reduce climate impacts alongside native biodiversity conservation, we sought to understand when conservation managers and funders explicitly sought to use or fund the eradication of invasive mammals from islands to achieve positive climate outcomes. To provide context, we first summarized available literature of the synergistic relationship between invasive species and climate change, including case studies where invasive mammal eradications served to meet climate adaptation or mitigation solutions. Second, we conducted a systematic review of the literature and eradication-related conference proceedings to identify when these synergistic effects of climate and invasive species were explicitly addressed through eradication practices. Third, we reviewed projects from four large funding entities known to support climate change solutions and/or native biodiversity conservation efforts and identified when eradications were funded in a climate change context. The combined results of our case study summary paired with systematic reviews found that, although eradicating invasive mammals from islands is an effective climate adaptation strategy, island eradications are poorly represented within the climate change adaptation and mitigation funding framework. We believe this is a lost opportunity and encourage eradication practitioners and funders of climate change adaptation to leverage this extremely effective nature-based tool into positive conservation and climate resilience solutions.
Highlights
Invasive Alien Species are a primary driver of native biodiversity loss (Table 1) worldwide [1,2,3], with cascading effects on whole ecosystems and realized consequences to human societies and welfare [4,5,6,7].Driven by globalization, the development of new commercial pathways and associated 4.0/).increased movement of goods and humans around the globe, the frequency of IAS introductions and subsequent establishment continues to increase dramatically [8,9,10,11]
WoS and proceedings searches to determine the type of paper and ensure that the following criteria were met: focus on an invasive vertebrate, focus on islands, focus on climate change, and focus on invasive species eradication actions
The negative impacts of IAS on native biodiversity loss are compounded by climate change, which facilitates the spread and establishment of IAS, creates new opportunities for other species to become invasive and increases their negative impacts
Summary
Invasive Alien Species (hereafter, “IAS”; see Table 1 for definitions of key terms) are a primary driver of native biodiversity loss (Table 1) worldwide [1,2,3], with cascading effects on whole ecosystems and realized consequences to human societies and welfare [4,5,6,7]. Climate change intensifies the effects of invasive alien species (IAS), for example by increasing the risk of spread and establishment, increasing population sizes, and/or altering their diet or behavior; while directly impacting native biodiversity via creating mismatches in species niche requirements, sea-level rise, and extreme weather events. Warmer temperatures and altered precipitation patterns associated with climate change will influence both the thermal and resource restrictions of some IAS, facilitating the range expansions or population increases of some invasive species [41,83,89]. Climate change alters effectiveness of IAS control and recovery of native biodiversity
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