Can a native species be invasive?
Yes, though not in the same way as an exotic. By way of example, consider an abandoned farm field that is left to nature. Once cultivation ceases and the field is left to natural processes, plants migrate into the field from the surrounding woodlots and fields in a process known as ecological succession. The first plants to establish generally are pioneer species, or early successionals. Such plants typically reproduce prolifically and are often short lived. While these plants may be described as invasive in the sense that they invade fields, and they may be problematic in places where succession is not allowed to proceed, they tend to lose out to climax species where succession is permitted to proceed to the climax state. Thus an invasive native plant species may be problematic for land managers trying to maintain a garden for example but not for intact surrounding natural areas where the processes that kept them in check historically in nature would do the same even though they may t
