Land-use and socio-economic correlates of plant invasions in European and North African countries

Biological invasions are causing significant ecological impacts and economical costs world-wide. Human activities are the primary cause of this conservation and environmental problem. We conducted a stepwise regression analysis between several land-use and socio-economic parameters and the density of alien species in European and North African countries. We found that the parameters that best explained the density of alien plants were the Human Development Index and imports. The extent of terrestrial transport networks and the percentage of protected areas were the land-use variables that best accounted for the density of alien plants. If we are going to influence policies dealing with biological invasions, more emphasis should be placed on the analysis of land-use and socio-economic determinants at different spatial scales and their changes throughout time. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.