Invasive forest species control in a protected area

Abstract

Biological invasions are one of the main causes of world biodiversity loss. In forestry, a great management problem may be that of exotic plants introduced in the past and then turned out to be invasive, threatening all those forests whose identity is a conservation goal. In Italy this question has not yet been given much attention. This paper focuses on two species widely spread on Italian territory: tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle) and black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.). After a description of their characteristics and the state of the art on general control methods, the experience in a Tuscan protected area is illustrated: here the distribution of the two species has been surveyed and studied, in order to hypothesize management guidelines for their control.