Ecological impacts and social perceptions of Ailanthus altissima on urban soils

Occurrence
Latest version published by Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle & Evolutive (CEFE) on Feb 14, 2026 Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle & Evolutive (CEFE)
Publication date:
14 February 2026
License:
CC-BY 4.0

Download the latest version of this resource data as a Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A) or the resource metadata as EML or RTF:

Data as a DwC-A file download 10,710 records in English (238 KB) - Update frequency: unknown
Metadata as an EML file download in English (33 KB)
Metadata as an RTF file download in English (12 KB)

Description

This dataset, collected in 2025 as part of a PhD research project conducted at CEFE, documents the diversity and community structure of soil collembolans and mites across multiple urban sites in the city of Montpellier (France), along an invasion gradient of the tree of heaven Ailanthus altissima. The objective of the study is to better understand how the intensity and residence time of invasion by this invasive alien species influence soil biodiversity and associated ecological processes in urban environments. Sampling was carried out across a network of urban sites presenting different levels of invasion by Ailanthus altissima. Harmonized field protocols were implemented to collect soil mesofauna and to characterize the vegetation associated with each sampling site. The dataset notably includes: – Collembolans and mites: abundance and taxonomic composition per sampling point and site along the invasion gradient. – Vegetation: inventory of plant species recorded at each sampling site. – Tree of heaven: data on density and age structure were collected but are not included in this dataset (available in the full project database). Licence: CC BY 4.0

Data Records

The data in this occurrence resource has been published as a Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A), which is a standardized format for sharing biodiversity data as a set of one or more data tables. The core data table contains 10,710 records.

This IPT archives the data and thus serves as the data repository. The data and resource metadata are available for download in the downloads section. The versions table lists other versions of the resource that have been made publicly available and allows tracking changes made to the resource over time.

Versions

The table below shows only published versions of the resource that are publicly accessible.

How to cite

Researchers should cite this work as follows:

Baboin L, Cortet J (2026). Ecological impacts and social perceptions of Ailanthus altissima on urban soils. Version 1.0. Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle & Evolutive (CEFE). Occurrence dataset. https://ipt.gbif.fr/resource?r=baboin_ailante&v=1.0

Rights

Researchers should respect the following rights statement:

The publisher and rights holder of this work is Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle & Evolutive (CEFE). This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY 4.0) License.

GBIF Registration

This resource has been registered with GBIF, and assigned the following GBIF UUID: 79e48d87-73bc-4b14-837f-2595b2c7f807.  Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle & Evolutive (CEFE) publishes this resource, and is itself registered in GBIF as a data publisher endorsed by GBIF France.

Keywords

Occurrence; Invasive alien species; Urban sites; Community structure; Soil biodiversity; Soil mesofauna; Collembola; Acari; Vegetation surveys; Urban environments; Soil core sampling.

Contacts

Lisa Baboin
  • Originator ●
  • Point Of Contact
CEFE
Jerome Cortet
  • Originator ●
  • Point Of Contact
CEFE
Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole
Ville de Montpellier

Geographic Coverage

N/A

Bounding Coordinates South West [43.594, 3.838], North East [43.649, 3.91]

Taxonomic Coverage

No Description available

Kingdom Plantae, Animalia
Class Clitellata, Entognatha, Arachnida, Aves, Diplopoda, Chilopoda, Pauropoda, Symphyla, Equisetopsida, Insecta, Malacostraca, Leotiomycetes
Order Dipsacales, Geraniales, Asterales, Sarcoptiformes, Ericales, Solanales, Passeriformes, Poales, Enchytraeida, Malpighiales, Boraginales, Lamiales, Caryophyllales, Collembola, Thysanoptera, Diplura, Piperales, Rosales, Brassicales, Sapindales, Mesostigmata, Gentianales, Pinales, Cupressales, Diptera, Pseudoscorpiones, Arecales, Alismatales, Fagales, Ranunculales, Laurales, Asparagales, Malvales, Hymenoptera, Liliales, Equisetales, Fabales, Saxifragales, Oxalidales, Isopoda, Apiales
Family Actinidiaceae, Lamiaceae, Malvaceae, Araliaceae, Oxalidaceae, Pittosporaceae, Scrophulariaceae, Plantaginaceae, Ranunculaceae, Rutaceae, Amaryllidaceae, Arecaceae, Apiaceae, Oleaceae, Cupressaceae, Caryophyllaceae, Papaveraceae, Ulmaceae, Araceae, Polygonaceae, Geraniaceae, Brassicaceae, Fabaceae, Violaceae, Orchidaceae, Urticaceae, Aristolochiaceae, Convolvulaceae, Amaranthaceae, Smilacaceae, Cannabaceae, Campanulaceae, Rhamnaceae, Sapindaceae, Acanthaceae, Rosaceae, Muscicapidae, Equisetaceae, Acaridae, Asparagaceae, Solanaceae, Pinaceae, Iridaceae, Simaroubaceae, Poaceae, Rubiaceae, Crassulaceae, Fagaceae, Caprifoliaceae, Boraginaceae, Lauraceae, Viburnaceae, Moraceae, Apocynaceae, Enchytraeidae, Asteraceae, Orobanchaceae, Salicaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Anacardiaceae, Formicidae

Temporal Coverage

Start Date / End Date 2025-02-03 / 2025-04-09

Project Data

No Description available

Title Ecological impacts and social perceptions of Ailanthus altissima on urban soils

The personnel involved in the project:

Lisa Baboin
  • Author
Jerome Cortet

Sampling Methods

Soil mesofauna communities were sampled using standardized soil core collection methods across all study sites. Extracted fauna were sorted and identified morphologically, focusing on collembolans and mites. Vegetation surveys were conducted at each site to characterize plant community composition. Sampling protocols were harmonized to allow comparisons along the invasion gradient.

Study Extent The study was conducted in the city of Montpellier (southern France) across a network of urban sites distributed along a gradient of invasion by the tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima). Sampling sites included public green spaces, urban woodlands, and vegetated patches embedded within the metropolitan landscape. Sites were selected to represent varying invasion intensities and residence times of the invasive tree species.

Method step description:

  1. Field sampling was conducted across urban sites representing different invasion levels of Ailanthus altissima. Soil cores were collected and processed in the laboratory to extract mesofauna. Specimens were sorted and identified under magnification. Vegetation inventories were performed at each sampling location. Data were standardized, taxonomically harmonized, georeferenced, and formatted according to Darwin Core standards prior to publication.

Additional Metadata