Australian tree fern invasion

Names and classification

Record type

threat

Kauaʻi occurrence and status

Recorded state

Active / established

Threats and conservation

Pressure source

Cyathea cooperi

Exposure pathway

Canopy/subcanopy establishment and competitive replacement in wet forest

Consequences

Competitive displacement and altered forest structure

Affected requirements

Native fern/tree recruitment and forest structure

Susceptibility

Wet and montane forest communities

Reversibility

Locally controllable; landscape reversibility depends on invasion extent and follow-up

Early warning indicators

Adult/juvenile density; spore-producing plants; new satellite patches

Conservation interventions

Implementation limits

Magnitude, exposure and trend are not assumed uniform across Kauaʻi; local evidence governs.

Sources and further reading

• https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/dofaw/files/2025/03/KWA-Detailed-Mgmt-Plan-2012_reduced-size-3.pdf
• https://www.kauaiisc.org/

Connected Atlas records

• Lowland wet forest & shrubland · Ecosystems
• Montane wet forest & shrubland · Ecosystems
• Montane bog & dwarf wet shrubland · Ecosystems
• Priority invasive-plant control · Threats & Conservation