Invasion treadmills: when restoring invaded ecosystems leads to new invasions

When ecosystems become invaded by nonnative plants, a common restoration approach is removing those species. The goal of this restoration action is to pave a road for native populations to establish and thrive in the ecosystem. Yet, the management of target invaders can frequently lead to invasion of the site by a new invasive plant. These “invasion treadmills” are a global challenge to restoration. In this talk, I identify the range of drivers that cause invasion treadmills, which may help restoration managers predict when and where restoration may lead to invasion treadmills and ecologists identify outstanding research questions.