Biology of invasive species

Biological invasions are currently among the most serious factors threatening biodiversity globally. So great is their impact that they are considered to be one of the most significant problems affecting ecosystems, along with habitat destruction and climate change driven by human activity. This area of research focuses on the factors responsible for the invasion process, and on evaluating the ecological impact of biological invasions in the context of climate change. A major step in the IEB’s study of biological invasions has been the creation of the Biological Invasions Laboratory (LIB) in conjunction with the Universidad de Concepción’s Faculty of Forest Sciences, with the aim of identifying the features that determine whether or not a species is invasive, and understanding the characteristics that make ecosystems susceptible to invasion.