PARENT SESSION
Session #21: Current status of knowledge on invasive species: Theory and practice. Organized by: R. C. Anderson and W. R. Perry.
Thursday, August 9, 2001. Madison Ballroom B
Prioritizing plant: the alien plant ranking system.
Hiebert, Ron1, 1
ABSTRACT- Invasive plants pose a major challenge for park, preserve, and other wildland managers. Land managers not only have to decide where invasive plant management fits into a comprehensive management program, but also must decide which species to target for prevention, eradication and/or control. The Alien Plant Ranking System (APRS) is a tool that has been developed to help land managers make tough decisons concerning alien plants. The system is web-based and guides the user through 25 questions in 3 categories; current level of impact, innate ability of species to be a pest, and feasibility of control. The questions incorporate stochastic, extraploation, and biological considerations. Upon completion of a site survey and ranking of alien species, the land manger has information on which species currently appear innocuos, those that have a high potential to be pests, those that currently are causing significant impacts, and which are feasable to control. The system and its rationelle will be described along with examples of its application in the field.
KEY WORDS: invasive plants, ranking system, alien plants, decision support tools