Drivers of niche expansion during biological invasions

Project description

There is an increased focus on using models to predict species’ responses to various novel pressures in time (e.g. such as changes in climate), or in space (e.g. the potential distribution of invasive species). These models often rely on an understanding of a species niche requirements and the assumption that these requirements and the niche breadth are conserved across space and time. However, many non-native plant species have shown some change in niche characteristics when introduced to a new range, several showing niche expansion. If the niche has the ability to change, models made assuming niche conservatism will prove inaccurate.

Using invasive species, we utilize comparative and experimental studies to investigate the ecological and evolutionary drivers of niche expansion in plants. Invasives provide a unique opportunity to explore niche expansion, as their native and non-native distributions can act as quasi-independent replicates of the niche. Comparing the native and non-native species’ distributions can help elicit the mechanisms responsible for constructing niche limits, especially for those species which show niche expansion upon introduction.