What biological invasions 'are' is a matter of perspective

Invasion research today integrates active fields like biogeography, nature conservation, ecology, and evolutionary biology, and each of these fields contributes its own conceptual and terminological background. In this essay we advance the view that this is the reason why discussions on terminology keep flaring up time and time again. Our basic argument is that biological invasions cannot be perceived and defined independent of the specific research motivation. There are different, but equally valuable perspectives on biological invasions, each entailing a specific opinion about what the peculiarity of invasions is. We argue that a uniform usage of terms is not feasible, and even not desirable for invasion research, and suggest that the existing plurality of terms and concepts should be taken as an incentive to discuss the implications of different definitions. A stronger awareness and acknowledgement of the concepts underlying the terms used in interrelated research fields will enhance communication and promote progress in invasion research towards integrative, problem-oriented transdisciplinarity. (C) 2012 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.