Geographical isolation and invasion ecology

Abstract

Isolation is a fundamental geographical characteristic that plays an important role in invasion ecology. However, risk mapping for established non-native species currently tends to ignore isolation, and instead focuses on the risk of population growth through the use of species distribution models. By focusing on how geographical isolation can be used to improve invasive species risk assessments this paper aims to: (i) provide a brief review of how methods to quantify isolation have developed, (ii) describe least-cost modelling as one approach to quantify isolation, (iii) promote catchment area mapping as a method of continuous isolation mapping that can improve invasive species risk assessments that may currently only consider risk from population growth, and (iv) discuss ways in which geographical isolation could be modified to control invasive species.