Abstract

For millennia, humans have dominated the environment through the redistribution of resources. In particular, the translocation of plants beyond their geographic areas has resulted in a number of associated problems including the emergence and proliferation of biological invaders known more commonly as foreign, exotic, alien, or invasive species. The major concern with invasive species is that they are capable of modifying natural ecosystem functioning by means of native species displacement. Biogeochemically, invasives affect the pools and fluxes of material and energy by promoting accelerated flux rates. In association with a long term invasive assessment initiative; the Invasive Species Working Group, terrestrial species were monitored along 4 lakes in Kenosha County. All terrestrial monitoring was carried out along each lake outlet, and using 1x1m quadrats, species were identified, abundance estimated (based on percent cover), and soil samples collected for chemical testing in the lab. Results suggest that the native species at the specific sites still dominated native communities and, even in areas where invasive abundance was relatively high, nitrogen, potassium and phosphorous levels were on average, medium to low levels as were the pH levels which ranged from neutral to slightly alkaline. Contrary to our expectations, this data showed no correlation between invasive species and soil nutrient levels. Some potential reasons for this are that the data is relatively short term thus limits the extent to which we can extrapolate trends over time, or alternatively, that the invasives at the terrestrial sites have not been around long enough to have modified the below-ground communities. The soil community plays a quintessential role in not only regulating ecosystem-level processes such as the circulation of nutrients, but also in serving as a biodiversity bank for terrestrial ecosystems. Understanding the responses that occur within such soil environments is important if we seek to better comprehend the ways in which invasives modify the environment and eventually adopt practices that can prevent and/or manage their proliferation.