The Top 5 most Threatening Invasive Plants to Palau's Ecosystem
A Weed Risk Assessment (WRA) is a way to measure the threat to the local ecosystem of an invasive species. The assessment is a list of yes or no questions; the responses to these questions in regards to a specific species increases or lowers the WRA score where a high number is bad. This scale is out of 50 where a 50 would mean a species is incredibly capable of invading and outcompeting the native species. Example of traits that might cause this would be if the plant was drought resistant, its toxicity, its speed of growth, etc. All these traits and more make a plant a better competitor and therefore a bigger threat when introduced to an ecosystem with no balance on it (no native species eating it) and can cause irreparable damage.
The species listed here are considered to be beyond salvage, and all ecological efforts involving these species is containment, not elimination.
The WRA and survery of Palau invasives was done by HEAR in a 2008 Survey on Palau's Invasive Plants (a follow-up on a 2002 survey, also by HEAR.
Source: http://www.hear.org/pier/reports/p2008report.htm
The species listed here are considered to be beyond salvage, and all ecological efforts involving these species is containment, not elimination.
The WRA and survery of Palau invasives was done by HEAR in a 2008 Survey on Palau's Invasive Plants (a follow-up on a 2002 survey, also by HEAR.
Source: http://www.hear.org/pier/reports/p2008report.htm