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INVASION HOTSPOTS FOR NON-NATIVE PLANTS IN THE AREA OF THE NATURE PARK ŽUMBERAK – SAMOBORSKO GORJE

One of the biggest challenges for the biodiversity of the Nature Park Žumberak – Samoborsko gorje, beside the vegetation succession of habitats, is the invasion of non-native plants. Unlike the non-invasive flora, invasive non-native plant species have not been systematically studied in the entire area of the Park. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the presence and invasion hotspots of the non-native plant species within the boundaries of the Park. The research was carried out in August of 2016, 2017 and 2018 using MTB 1/64 grid units. Over 90% of the Park area was explored and a total of 32 invasive non-native plant species were recorded. The most common were Erigeron annuus (L.) Pers., Ambrosia artemisiifolia L., Conyza canadensis (L.) Cronquist, Robinia pseudoacacia L., Galinsoga ciliata (Raf.) S.F.Blake, Galinsoga parviflora Cav., Solidago gigantea Aiton and Solidago canadensis L. Explored grid units were categorized with respect to the number of determined invasive plants. As a result, an invasion hotspots map was obtained and the comparison was made with the topographic map of Croatia to analyze the correlation between the inhabited areas and the invasion hotspots. These results represent the basis for further monitoring of the population size and impact of invasive plants on the biodiversity of the Nature Park Žumberak – Samoborsko gorje, as well as possible control mechanisms of their spread.

invasive species, biodiversity, MTB grid, protected areas

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