An international consortium of researchers, led by Universidad Espíritu Santo together with 16 national and international institutions, has updated the catalog of non-native plants in continental Ecuador. The study recorded 1,260 taxa, of which 770 are exclusively cultivated, 486 grow in the wild, and 4 remain of unknown status.
Among the wild species, 52% are naturalized and 48% are considered casual, with the highest presence in the Andean region (93%), followed by the Coast (52%) and the Amazon (37%). These plants represent 2.6% of Ecuador’s flora, which comprises approximately 18,600 native species.
The most represented families are Poaceae (16%), Asteraceae (10%), and Fabaceae (9%); most are herbs (67%) originating from Asia and Africa. Local uses were documented for 385 taxa, mainly ornamental (42%) and medicinal (38%), while fewer than 40% are used for food, livestock, or forestry purposes.
The inventory was built using literature review, fieldwork, and citizen science records from iNaturalist. According to the authors, the study provides a scientific foundation for managing biological invasions through early detection, rapid response, and species prioritization.
This work is particularly relevant given that invasive species are responsible—alone or in combination with other factors—for up to 60% of documented global extinctions, in a context where more than 200 new non-native species are introduced worldwide every year.
