Suchergebnisse

International audience ; The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) was launched in 2012 by the European Commission to facilitate the exploration of existing alien species information and to assist the implementation of European policies on biological invasions. At the core of EASIN, there is an inventory of all known alien and cryptogenic species in Europe (the EASIN Catalogue, herein published), which includes relevant information, such as taxonomic classification, pathways of introduction, year and country of first introduction. Spatial records of species occurrence in Europe are stored in the EASIN geo-databases, integrating data from many data providers and the literature. All this information is publicly available through a widget framework, providing easy to use and flexible tools for searching and mapping. The EASIN datasets have been used for pan-European or regional assessments of pathways and gateways of alien invasions, towards the fulfilment of the related targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity and of European policies. Moreover, in support of the new EU Regulation on the prevention and management of the introduction and spread of invasive alien species in Europe, an Early Warning and Rapid Response System is being developed by EASIN.

The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) was launched in 2012 by the European Commission to facilitate the exploration of existing alien species information and to assist the implementation of European policies on biological invasions. At the core of EASIN, there is an inventory of all known alien and cryptogenic species in Europe (the EASIN Catalogue, herein published), which includes relevant information, such as taxonomic classification, pathways of introduction, year and country of first introduction. Spatial records of species occurrence in Europe are stored in the EASIN geo-databases, integrating data from many data providers and the literature. All this information is publicly available through a widget framework, providing easy to use and flexible tools for searching and mapping. The EASIN datasets have been used for pan-European or regional assessments of pathways and gateways of alien invasions, towards the fulfilment of the related targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity and of European policies. Moreover, in support of the new EU Regulation on the prevention and management of the introduction and spread of invasive alien species in Europe, an Early Warning and Rapid Response System is being developed by EASIN.

International audience ; The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) aims to facilitate the exploration of alien species information in Europe, and is recognized as the information system supporting European Union Member States in the implementation of the recently published Invasive Alien Species Regulation. In this paper, we present the role and activities of the EASIN Editorial Board (EB), which is responsible for the quality assurance, safeguarding and constant improvement of EASIN. The EB is supported by a web platform that facilitates online discussions about alien species. This platform creates a virtual community by providing a forum-like interface that is moderated by the EB Members but is freely accessible to the scientific community and the general public. It allows all registered users to make comments, raise questions and share experience and expertise on alien species in Europe. Moreover, it provides a means for exchanging opinions and solving disputes in a transparent way. The overall EB activity is commonly agreed upon procedures and standards.

International audience ; The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) aims to facilitate the exploration of alien species information in Europe, and is recognized as the information system supporting European Union Member States in the implementation of the recently published Invasive Alien Species Regulation. In this paper, we present the role and activities of the EASIN Editorial Board (EB), which is responsible for the quality assurance, safeguarding and constant improvement of EASIN. The EB is supported by a web platform that facilitates online discussions about alien species. This platform creates a virtual community by providing a forum-like interface that is moderated by the EB Members but is freely accessible to the scientific community and the general public. It allows all registered users to make comments, raise questions and share experience and expertise on alien species in Europe. Moreover, it provides a means for exchanging opinions and solving disputes in a transparent way. The overall EB activity is commonly agreed upon procedures and standards.

International audience ; The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) aims to facilitate the exploration of alien species information in Europe, and is recognized as the information system supporting European Union Member States in the implementation of the recently published Invasive Alien Species Regulation. In this paper, we present the role and activities of the EASIN Editorial Board (EB), which is responsible for the quality assurance, safeguarding and constant improvement of EASIN. The EB is supported by a web platform that facilitates online discussions about alien species. This platform creates a virtual community by providing a forum-like interface that is moderated by the EB Members but is freely accessible to the scientific community and the general public. It allows all registered users to make comments, raise questions and share experience and expertise on alien species in Europe. Moreover, it provides a means for exchanging opinions and solving disputes in a transparent way. The overall EB activity is commonly agreed upon procedures and standards.

International audience ; The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) aims to facilitate the exploration of alien species information in Europe, and is recognized as the information system supporting European Union Member States in the implementation of the recently published Invasive Alien Species Regulation. In this paper, we present the role and activities of the EASIN Editorial Board (EB), which is responsible for the quality assurance, safeguarding and constant improvement of EASIN. The EB is supported by a web platform that facilitates online discussions about alien species. This platform creates a virtual community by providing a forum-like interface that is moderated by the EB Members but is freely accessible to the scientific community and the general public. It allows all registered users to make comments, raise questions and share experience and expertise on alien species in Europe. Moreover, it provides a means for exchanging opinions and solving disputes in a transparent way. The overall EB activity is commonly agreed upon procedures and standards.

International audience ; The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) aims to facilitate the exploration of alien species information in Europe, and is recognized as the information system supporting European Union Member States in the implementation of the recently published Invasive Alien Species Regulation. In this paper, we present the role and activities of the EASIN Editorial Board (EB), which is responsible for the quality assurance, safeguarding and constant improvement of EASIN. The EB is supported by a web platform that facilitates online discussions about alien species. This platform creates a virtual community by providing a forum-like interface that is moderated by the EB Members but is freely accessible to the scientific community and the general public. It allows all registered users to make comments, raise questions and share experience and expertise on alien species in Europe. Moreover, it provides a means for exchanging opinions and solving disputes in a transparent way. The overall EB activity is commonly agreed upon procedures and standards.

The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) aims to facilitate the exploration of alien species information in Europe, and is recognized as the information system supporting European Union Member States in the implementation of the recently published Invasive Alien Species Regulation. In this paper, we present the role and activities of the EASIN Editorial Board (EB), which is responsible for the quality assurance, safeguarding and constant improvement of EASIN. The EB is supported by a web platform that facilitates online discussions about alien species. This platform creates a virtual community by providing a forum-like interface that is moderated by the EB Members but is freely accessible to the scientific community and the general public. It allows all registered users to make comments, raise questions and share experience and expertise on alien species in Europe. Moreover, it provides a means for exchanging opinions and solving disputes in a transparent way. The overall EB activity is commonly agreed upon procedures and standards.

WOS: 000422633100002 ; The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) aims to facilitate the exploration of alien species information in Europe, and is recognized as the information system supporting European Union Member States in the implementation of the recently published Invasive Alien Species Regulation. In this paper, we present the role and activities of the EASIN Editorial Board (EB), which is responsible for the quality assurance, safeguarding and constant improvement of EASIN. The EB is supported by a web platform that facilitates online discussions about alien species. This platform creates a virtual community by providing a forum-like interface that is moderated by the EB Members but is freely accessible to the scientific community and the general public. It allows all registered users to make comments, raise questions and share experience and expertise on alien species in Europe. Moreover, it provides a means for exchanging opinions and solving disputes in a transparent way. The overall EB activity is commonly agreed upon procedures and standards. ; European Commission's Directorate-General for Environment (DG ENV) ; The authors wish to thank the European Commission's Directorate-General for Environment (DG ENV) for their support. We thank also the anonymous reviewers for their useful comments and corrections.

Since 2016, the European Union (EU) has required Member States to prevent, control and eradicate selected invasive alien species (IAS) designated as Species of Union Concern. To improve these conservation efforts, online information systems are used to convey IAS information to the wider public, often as a means to bolster community-based environmental monitoring. Despite this, both the conformity and quality of information presented amongst online databases remain poorly understood. Here, we assess the harmonisation and educational potential of four major IAS databases (i.e., conformity of information and information quality, respectively): CABI, EASIN, GISD and NOBANIS. All databases were interrogated for information concerning 49 IAS of Union Concern. For each species, information presented within the evaluated databases was scored in relation to several key topics: morphological identification; EU distribution; detrimental impacts; control options; and the use of source material citations. Overall, scores differed significantly among databases and thus lacked harmonisation, whereby CABI ranked significantly highest based on the combined scores for all topics. In addition, CABI ranked highest for the individual topics of species identification, impacts, control options, and for the use of citations. EASIN ranked highest for species distribution data. NOBANIS consistently ranked as the lowest scoring database across all topics. For each topic, the highest scoring databases achieved scores indicative of detailed or highly detailed information, which suggests a high educational potential for the information portrayed. Nevertheless, the extent of harmonisation and quality of information presented amongst online databases should be improved. This is especially pertinent if online databases are to contribute to public participatory monitoring initiatives for IAS detection.

Since 2016, the European Union (EU) has required Member States to prevent, control and eradicate selected invasive alien species (IAS) designated as Species of Union Concern. To improve these conservation efforts, online information systems are used to convey IAS information to the wider public, often as a means to bolster community-based environmental monitoring. Despite this, both the conformity and quality of information presented amongst online databases remain poorly understood. Here, we assess the harmonisation and educational potential of four major IAS databases (i.e., conformity of information and information quality, respectively): CABI, EASIN, GISD and NOBANIS. All databases were interrogated for information concerning 49 IAS of Union Concern. For each species, information presented within the evaluated databases was scored in relation to several key topics: morphological identification; EU distribution; detrimental impacts; control options; and the use of source material citations. Overall, scores differed significantly among databases and thus lacked harmonisation, whereby CABI ranked significantly highest based on the combined scores for all topics. In addition, CABI ranked highest for the individual topics of species identification, impacts, control options, and for the use of citations. EASIN ranked highest for species distribution data. NOBANIS consistently ranked as the lowest scoring database across all topics. For each topic, the highest scoring databases achieved scores indicative of detailed or highly detailed information, which suggests a high educational potential for the information portrayed. Nevertheless, the extent of harmonisation and quality of information presented amongst online databases should be improved. This is especially pertinent if online databases are to contribute to public participatory monitoring initiatives for IAS detection.

International audience ; The number of alien species arriving within new regions has increased at unprecedented rates. Managing the pathways through which alien species arrive and spread is important to reduce the threat of biological invasions. Harmonising information on pathways across individual sectors and user groups is therefore critical to underpin policy and action. The European Alien Species Information Network (EASIN) has been developed to easily facilitate open access to data of alien species in Europe. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Pathway Classification framework has become a global standard for the classification of pathways. We followed a structured approach to assign pathway information within EASIN for a subset of alien species in Europe, which covered 4169 species, spanning taxonomic groups and environments. We document constraints and challenges associated with implementing the CBD Pathway Classification framework and propose potential amendments to increase clarity. This study is unique in the scope of taxonomic coverage and also in the inclusion of primary (independent introductions to Europe) and secondary (means of dispersal for species expansion within Europe, after their initial introduction) modes of introduction. In addition, we summarise the patterns of introduction pathways within this subset of alien species within the context of Europe. Based on the analyses, we confirm that the CBD Pathway Classification framework offers a robust, hierarchical system suitable for the classification of alien species introduction and spread across a wide range of taxonomic groups and environments. However, simple modifications could improve interpretation of the pathway categories ensuring consistent application across databases and information systems at local, national, regional, continental and global scales. Improving consistency would also help in the development of pathway action plans, as required by EU legislation.