latana camara is a perennial shrub native to the tropical and subtropical area of Americas and Africa. It is an ornamental flower, brought to India by the British during the colonial period. Now naturalised to different regions of India, adapting to all kinds of ecosystems in India even famously invading 40% of India’s tiger ranges. The flowers for this shrub always come in a combination of two colours pink, yellow, orange, and red.
Lantana, a partial climber, adapts to new soil and quickly invades new spaces by smothering existing plants and trees by creating a thick blanket over them, stealing sunlight and valuable nutrients from the soil. Latana is definetly one of the main threats to India’s wildlife.
Where has this alien invaded?
Lantana is now listed in the ‘invasive alien species list of India’ by the National Biodiversity Authority under the Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change, Government of India. The criteria adopted were based on its invasive attributes. Lantana Camara is categorised as being invasive to countries outside India,. They also multiply rapidly, and hence spreading in different ecosystems. Moreover, they have multiple modes of reproduction and dispersion.
They were listed showing negative impacts on ecological functions, economic and biodiversity loss. The main mode of reproduction for the plant is through seed dispersal. Birds, monkeys and so on which help germination rates compared to fresh seeds. The other way is also through vegetative propagation making them perennial. Little can be done when seeds are dispersed by birds.
Lantana is naturalised in 60 countries and continually expanding territory. Clearing forests invaded by the plant through fires is ill-advised as seeds from these plants can tolerate high temperatures. After clearance Latana they can invade faster as the land is now left barren. Forests that are left undisturbed are not invaded. However, gaps created from logging can leave the forests susceptible. The economic cost of invasive species is estimated to be $2 billion in the last 60 years. The projections are estimated to be higher in the future. This is becasue invasive species show resilience towards changes in climate, and degradation of soils.
Why makes Latana camara so invasive?
The reasons why lantana camara is a subject for concern globally is due to its ability to adapt to bio-geographically distinct regions in short periods of time. In a study done (Ninad A et al, 2020), The shrub displayed adaptive plasticity, adapting to higher temperatures, lower fertility soil and more shade than its native region. The reason for which can be due to its dated history. This suggests excessive hybridization from its allopatric populations and genetic diversity improving its ability for adaptive plasticity.
Forests degraded due to human influence and humid regions are said to be most vulnerable. Climate change and urbanisation may tip the scales in favour of the shrub. An increase in barren and waste lands, degraded soils can spread the growth of invasive species especially Lantana Camara.
How is Latana camara destroying wildlife?
In a study done (Pooja C,2023) in tropical dry forest in the district of Bichhiya, Madhya Pradesh to check the effects on bird diversity after the removal of Lantana Camara. No changes were found in the diversity especially in the short term. However, there was a change in the composition of bird species.
Acoustic space use (ASU) which measures the time animal sounds are active, was used in the study. the higher the ASU shows a diverse vocalising species. Different species sounds were recorded instead of more diverse ones which can be attributed to the change in habitats of certain species due to the removal of Lantana. This study can be used as the benchmark for further observations made at a later stage.
The ecological loss brought by invasive plants leads to a loss in soil microbe diversity, loss of native species of plants and insects. In the Galapagos Archipelago, Lantana competition caused the extinction of a shrub linum cratericola.
In Kenya, the replacement of native pastures by Lantana threatens the habitat of the sable antelope. The growth of the plant can also lead to change in soil conditions to make it more suitable for the plant, derailing efforts in restoration of native ecological landscapes. Efforts to curb the growth of invasive species is not easy but necessary to restore our landscapes to its original form so they can support diverse life forms.
What are the challenges of removing Latana?
One way of ridding roadsides, wastelands, forests and other places where they are found is by uprooting the plant and growing something in its place as well as monitoring them in the meantime to make sure it doesn’t regrow. Jayashree Ratnam, Associate Director of Wildlife Biology and Conservation programme at NCBS, Bengaluru spoke to Mongabay “It is already known that Lantana needs to be uprooted, rather than merely cut above-ground, to prevent aggressive regrowth from the root-stocks. Our work has confirmed this,We, therefore, recommend uprooting, followed by weeding and some seeding of native grasses, for the most effective return to native under-stories in deciduous forests, which are amongst the most commonly invaded forest types in India”, she added.
Written by: Keziah George
Help us Help Them! Think Wildlife Foundation is a non profit organization with various conservation initiatives. Our most prominent campaign is our Caring for Pari intiative. Pari is a rehabilitated elephant at the Wildlife SoS Hospital. 25% of the profits from our store are donated to the elephant hospital for Pari. Other than buying our wonderful merchandise, you could donate directly to our Caring For Pari fundraiser.