Invasive buckthorn sightings in Canada drop but stay high
iNaturalist Community
Invasive Species
If you've noticed a shrub with glossy oval leaves and small black berries crowding out native plants along a trail or fence line, it's likely common buckthorn, and tracking where it pops up helps land managers target removal before it spreads further.
Common buckthorn is a fast-spreading invasive shrub that chokes out native plants in forests and hedgerows. This week, nearly 200 people across Canada logged sightings of it on iNaturalist, a free app where anyone can photograph and identify wild plants. That's way fewer reports than the week before, but buckthorn still ranks among the most-spotted plants in the country, showing just how widespread it's become.
Key Findings
186 observations of Rhamnus cathartica logged in Canada over the past 7 days
Observations fell by 590, down from 776 the prior week
Despite the drop, it remains among the most-observed plants in Canada this week
chevron_right Technical Summary
Canadian iNaturalist users logged 186 sightings of invasive common buckthorn this week, keeping it among the most-reported plants in the country even as sightings dropped sharply from 776 the week before.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Trending: common buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) — 186 observations this week
Common buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica) is a species in the family Rhamnaceae. iNaturalist users recorded 186 observations of it in Canada in the 7 days before today, among the most for any plant the...
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
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Rhamnus cathartica, the European buckthorn, common buckthorn, purging buckthorn, or just buckthorn, is a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Rhamnaceae. It is native to Europe, northwest Africa and western Asia, from the central British Isles south to Morocco, and east to Kyrgyzst...