Data from: Severity of impacts of an introduced species corresponds with regional eco-evolutionary experience

Invasive plant impacts vary widely across introduced ranges. We tested the
hypothesis that differences in the eco-evolutionary experience of native
communities with the invader correspond with the impacts of invasive
species on native vegetation, with impacts increasing with ecological
novelty. We compared plant species richness and composition beneath Pinus
contorta to that in adjacent vegetation and other P. contorta stands
across a network of sites in its native (Canada and USA) and non-native
(Argentina, Chile, Finland, New Zealand, Scotland, Sweden) ranges. At
sites in North America and Europe, within the natural distribution of the
genus Pinus, P. contorta was not associated with decreases in diversity.
In the Southern Hemisphere, where there are no native Pinaceae, plant
communities beneath P. contorta were less diverse than in other regions
and compared to uninvaded native vegetation. Effects on native vegetation
were particularly pronounced where P. contorta was a more novel life form
and exhibited higher growth rates. Our results support the hypothesis that
the eco-evolutionary experience of the native vegetation, and thus the
novelty of the invader, determines the magnitude of invader impacts on
native communities. Understanding the eco-evolutionary context of
invasions will help to better understand and predict where invasion
impacts will be greatest and to prioritize invasive species management.