Biological Invasions in South Africa

0539224 - BÚ 2021 RIV CH eng M - Monography Chapter
Shackleton, R. T. - Novoa, Ana - Shackleton, R. - Kull, C. A.
The social dimensions of biological invasions in South Africa.
Biological Invasions in South Africa. Cham: Springer, 2020 - (van Wilgen, B.; Measy, J.; Richardson, D.; Zengeya, T.), s. 701-729. Invading Nature, Springer Series in Invasion Ecology, 14. ISBN 978-3-030-32393-6
R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GX19-28807X
Institutional support: RVO:67985939
Keywords : South Africa * plant invasions * management
OECD category: Ecology
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-32394-3_24

This chapter examines current knowledge relating to the human and social dimensions of biological invasions in South Africa. We do so by advancing 12 propositions and examining the evidence for or against each using South African literature. The propositions cover four broad issues: how people cause invasions, how they conceptualise them, effects of invasive species on people, and peoples’ responses to them. The propositions we assess include: (1) intentional introductions were and continue to reflect the social ethos of the time, (2) people go to great lengths to ensure that newly introduced species establish themselves, (3) human-mediated modifications help invasive species to establish, (4) howpeople think about and study invasive species is strongly shaped by social-ecological contexts, (5) knowledge and awareness of invasive species is low amongst the general public, (6) personal values are the primary factor affecting perceptions of invasive alien species and their control, (7) specific social-ecological contexts mediate how invasive species affect people, (8) research on social effects of invasive species primarily focuses on negative impacts, (9) the negative social impacts of invasive species on local livelihoods are of more concern to people than impacts on biodiversity, (10) people are less willing tomanage species regarded as ‘charismatic’, (11) social heterogeneity increases conflicts around the management of biological invasions, and (12) engagement with society is key to successful management. By advancing and questioning propositions, we were able to determine what is known, provide evidence for where gaps lie, and thus identify areas for future research.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0317014