Before we can project range shifts with climate change, it’s important that we understand invasive species’ current distributions and potential to spread, given today’s climate. While distribution maps for individual invasive plants exist, they tend to be inconsistent in the sources of occurrence data, modeling processes, spatial resolution, and the degree to which expert opinion is incorporated into the research. To develop more consistent distribution maps tailored to address stakeholder needs, Young et al. (2020) collaborated with managers to create the Invasive Species Habitat Tool (INHABIT). INHABIT provides habitat suitability maps at a fine resolution (90 m) for 137 plant invaders in the U.S. Users can identify environmental drivers of invasive species distributions, toggle for degree of model certainty, and view invasion risk estimated for different management units, such as land managed by the National Parks Service and the Fish & Wildlife Service. Northeast managers can use this information to identify invasion risk to management areas across local, regional, and national contexts.
