Abstract
Alien plants may provide considerable benefits to biodiversity in urban areas while showing low to moderate risk of negative impacts. Here, we evaluated the ecological role of the alien tree Bombax ceiba when interacting with nectar-feeding birds, including its potential for negative impacts as an invasive plant in an urban area in Brazil. At the community level, network analysis of 70 bird species interacting with flowers from 73 plant species showed B. ceiba to be one of the few "hub" plant species, indicating its importance as a nectar resource for urban birds. Specifically, B. ceiba flowers attracted 38 bird species with different habits (feeding guilds and habitat requirements), most of which fed on nectar, while some also consumed floral parts. On the other hand, the semiquantitative risk assessment for B. ceiba regarding potential negative impacts on native species and ecosystems indicated only a moderate risk, suggesting an overall benefit of keeping this tree species in the urban landscape. In this context, we highlight that the function, not only the origin of a species, may be used to plan "biophilic" cities through urban greening. Moreover, possible suppression of alien plants should consider the ecological role these species play in urban areas. Given that proper assessment of risk factors is carried out, urban afforestation with some alien plant species can promote biodiversity and ecosystem services by providing key resources during food scarcity for the fauna.
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Acknowledgements
We thank Camila S. Souza for her help with the network figure. We also thank an anonymous reviewer and the associate editor, J. Kollmann, for suggestions that improved the presentation of our study. The first author dedicates this paper to his mother (In Memoriam).
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This study is part of an independent project conducted by the first author over many years. Although aided by researchers with support from Coordination for Higher Education Staff Development, CAPES (i.e., LLS and BMR), this investigation, in particular, did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. PKM had funding from Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais - FAPEMIG (RED-00253-16 and APQ-01151-22).
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PAS contributed to the research conception and design. PAS, AGC, ACSG, LLS, LB, and BMR collected the data. PAS and PKM performed data analysis and wrote the first draft of the manuscript. All authors commented on the manuscript and approved the final version.
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Silva, P.A., Cherutte, A.G., Gomes, A.C.S. et al. The ecological role and potential impact of an alien tree highly attractive to native nectar-feeding birds in urban areas. Urban Ecosyst 26, 1029–1040 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-023-01345-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-023-01345-9