The distribution of range sizes of native and alien plants in four European countries and the effects of residence time

Do the statistical distributions of range sizes of native and alien species differ? If so, is this because of residence time effects? And can such effects indicate an average time to a maximum? Ireland, Britain, Germany and the Czech Republic. The data are presence or absence of higher plants in mapping units of 100 km(2) (Ireland and Britain) or c. 130 km(2) (Germany and the Czech Republic) in areas varying from 79 to 357 thousand km(2). Logit transforms of range sizes so defined were tested for normality, and examined by ANOVA, and by loess, ordinary least square (OLS) and reduced major axis regressions. Current range sizes, in logits, are near normally distributed. Those of native plants are larger than those of naturalized neophytes (plants introduced since 1500 ad) and much larger than those of casual neophytes. Archaeophytes (introduced earlier) have range sizes slightly larger than natives, except in Ireland. Residence time, the time since an invasive species arrived in the wild at a certain place, affects range sizes. The relationships of the range of naturalized neophytes to residence time are effectively straight in all four places, showing no significant curvature or asymptote back to 1500, though there are few records between 1500 and 1800. The relationships have an r(2) of only about 10%. Both OLS regressions and reduced major axes can be used to estimate the time it takes for the range of a naturalized neophyte to reach a maximum. Established neophytes have smaller range size distributions than natives probably because many have not yet reached their maximum. We estimate it takes at least 150 years, possibly twice that, on average, for the maximum to be reached in areas of the order of 10(5) km(2). Policy needs to allow for the variation in rates of spread and particularly the long time needed to fill ranges. Most naturalized neophytes are still expanding their ranges in Europe.