Table of Contents

One. Introduction.- 1. On invading species and invaded ecosystems: the interplay of historical chance and biological necessity.- Two. Plant invasions.- 2. Plant invasions in Central Europe: historical and ecological aspects.- 3. History of the impact of man on the distribution of plant species.- 4. Recent plant invasions in the Circum-Mediterranean region.- 5. The invading weeds within the Western Mediterranean Basin.- 6. Widespread adventive plants in Catalonia.- 7. History and patterns of plant invasion in Northern Africa.- 8. Invasions of adventive plants in Israel.- 9. Man and vegetation in the Mediterranean area during the last 20,000 years.- 10. Plant invasions in Southern Europe from the Paleoecological point of view.- 11. Mediterranean weeds: exchanges of invasive plants between the five Mediterranean regions of the world.- Three. Animal invasions.- 12. The invasion of Northern Europe during the Pleistocene by Mediterranean species of Coleoptera.- 13. Migratory Phenomena in European animal species.- 14. The bean beetle (Acanthoscelides obtectus) and its host, the French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris): a two-way colonization story.- 15. Some recent bird invasions in Europe and the Mediterranean Basin.- 16. Of mice and men.- 17. Invasions by parasites in continental Europe.- 18. Human activities and modification of ichtyofauna of the Mediterranean sea: effect on parasitosis.- 19. Influence of environmental factors on the invasion of molluscs by parasites: with special reference to Europe.- Four. Mechanisms of invasions.- 20. In search of the characteristics of plant invaders.- 21. Biogeographical and physiological aspects of the invasion by Dittrichia (ex Inula) viscosa W. Greuter, a ruderal species in the Mediterranean Basin.- 22. Invaders and disequilibrium.- 23. Species-specific pollination: a help or a limitation to range extension?.- 24. Genetic differentiation in beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) during periods of invasion and regeneration.- 25. Invasion of natural pastures by a cultivated grass (Dactylis glomerata L.) in Galicia, Spain: process and consequence on plant-cattle interactions.- 26. Introduced and cultivated fleshy-fruited plants: consequences of a mutualistic Mediterranean plant-bird system.- 27. Fire as an agent of plant invasion? A case study in the French Mediterranean vegetation.- List of contributors.- Index of Genera and Species.- General index.