Although islands make up only a small fraction of Earth's land surface, they contain a disproportionately large share of global biodiversity. Unfortunately, they also experience high levels of invasion by non-native species. In this project, we aim to explore the distribution of native and non-native plant species on 264 islands offshore northern Aotearoa New Zealand to help conservation bodies make informed management decisions.

Key Findings

(1) There are subtle, yet distinctive, differences in the distribution of native and non-native species on Aotearoa New Zealand offshore islands. Invasive plant species prefer larger, less isolated, less exposed islands located closer to urban areas.

(2) These differences are often determined by plant traits. For instance, grasses tend to be distributed more similarly to native species compared to woody species.

(3) However, the key factor shaping plant invasions on Aotearoa New Zealand islands is naturalization time. The earlier a species naturalized, the greater the number of islands it occupies.

• Latest research

Publications

• Mologni, F., Bellingham, P. J., Cameron, E. K., Wright, A. E., & Wang, Y. (2025). Integrating Phylogeny and Functional Traits into Evaluations of Nestedness in Island Floras. EcoEvoRxiv. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32942/X2CK7J
• Mologni, F., Bellingham, P. J., Cameron, E. K., & Wright, A. E. (2024). Time since first naturalization is key to explaining non-native plant invasions on islands. Journal of Biogeography, 51(8), 1340-1350. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14825
• Mologni, F. (2022). Different levels of disturbance influence the distributional patterns of native but not exotic plant species on New Zealand small islands. Frontiers of Biogeography, 14(2). DOI: https://doi.org/10.21425/F5FBG54598
• Mologni, F., Bellingham, P. J., Cameron, E. K., Dinh, K., Wright, A. E., & Burns, K. C. (2022). Functional traits explain non-native plant species richness and occupancy on northern New Zealand islands. Biological Invasions, 24(7), 2135–2154. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-022-02762-1
• Mologni, F., Bellingham, P. J., Tjørve, E., Cameron, E. K., Wright, A. E., & Burns, K. C. (2021). Similar yet distinct distributional patterns characterize native and exotic plant species richness across northern New Zealand islands. Journal of Biogeography, 48(7), 1731–1745. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14110

This research was made possible through the invaluable support of: