Plant size and habitat traits influence cycad susceptibility to invasive species
Tuesday, August 4, 2020 - 11:00
in Biology & Nature
When humans bring a non-native herbivore to an isolated island, the native trees do not possess traits to craft an operative defense to the new threat, and the results can be devastating. A long-term study on cycads in Guam has revealed how rapidly invasive species devastated the native Cycas micronesica species and the key factors that have influenced the plant's mortality. The research—conducted by the Western Pacific Tropical Research Center at the University of Guam and the College of Micronesia-FSM—is published in the May 2020 issue of Diversity, a peer-reviewed journal published by MDPI.