IPBES (2023). Thematic Assessment Report on Invasive Alien Species and their Control of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Roy, H.E., Pauchard, A., Stoett, P., and Renard Truong, T. (eds.). IPBES secretariat, Bonn, Germany. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.743068

Summary

The first comprehensive global report on invasive alien species and their control, the Invasive Alien Species Assessment was developed over 4 years by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), through the United Nations Environment Programme. The Assessment was produced by a multidisciplinary team of 86 experts from 47 countries, encompassing all regions of the world and many disciplines, with ~200 contributing authors who reviewed over 13,000 documents.

Key Findings

• Invasive species, which are non-native species spread to new regions by humans that have negative impacts to nature and people, are one of the 5 major drivers of biodiversity loss globally and cost society U.S. $423 billion a year.
• 37,000 established non-native species have been introduced by human activities worldwide and 200 new invasive species are added each year.
• More than 2,300 invasive species are found on lands of Indigenous Peoples across all regions of Earth.
• 83% of countries do not have national legislation or regulations directed specifically toward the prevention and control of invasive species and nearly half of all countries (45%) do not invest in management of invasive species.
• Invasive species have played a role in 60% of global species extinctions; and are the sole driver of 16% of recorded extinctions.
• Climate change will also be a major cause of future increases in the risk of invasive species