The Role of Space in Invasive Species Management

This chapter focuses on the spatial characteristics of invasive species management. Specifically, it looks at control of the spread of a species introduced to an area. It begins with a review of the emerging literature on the spatial economics of invasive species. The studies are reviewed in terms of their use of space: the inclusion of local heterogeneity and the analysis of a network of areas (i.e., two-patches versus multiple-patches). It is shown that most of the studies either focus on heterogeneity in simple landscapes with two patches, or on complex landscapes with multiple areas but ignoring spatial heterogeneity. The chapter develops a simple model to explore the role of spatial heterogeneity in invasive species management in a landscape with multiple areas. A final section recapitulates the main points and offers conclusions.