Data from: Temperature, topography, soil characteristics, and NDVI drive habitat preferences of a shade-tolerant invasive grass

Aim: Despite the large literature documenting the negative effects of
invasive grasses, we lack an understanding of the drivers of their habitat
suitability, especially for shade-tolerant species that do not respond
positively to canopy disturbance. We aimed to understand the environmental
niche and potential spatial distribution of a relatively new invasive
species, wavyleaf basketgrass (Oplismenus undulatifolius (Ard.) Roem.
& Schult, WLBG) by leveraging data available at two different
spatial scales. Location: Mid-Atlantic region of the United States
Methods: Maximum entropy modeling (Maxent) was used to predict the habitat
suitability of WLBG at the regional and the landscape scale. Following
variable evaluation, model calibration, and model evaluation, final models
were created using 1,000 replicates and projected to each study area.
Results: At the regional scale, our best models show that suitability for
WLBG was driven by relatively high annual mean temperatures, low
temperature seasonality and monthly range, low slope, and high cumulative
normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). At the landscape scale,
suitability was highest near roads and streams, far from trails, at low
elevations, in sandy, moist soil, and in areas with high NDVI. Main
Conclusions: We found that invasion potential of this relatively new
invader appears high in productive, mesic habitats at low slope and
elevations. At the regional scale, our model predicted areas of suitable
habitat far outside areas where WLBG has been reported, including large
portions of Virginia and West Virginia, suggests serious potential for
spread. However, large portions of this area carry a high extrapolation
risk and should therefore be interpreted with caution. In contrast, at the
landscape level, the suitability of WLBG is largely restricted to areas
near current presence points, suggesting that the expansion risk of this
species within Shenandoah National Park is somewhat limited