From habitats to hashtags: examining online discussions about invasive species

Kód výsledku v IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F00216208%3A11310%2F25%3A10512212" target="_blank" >RIV/00216208:11310/25:10512212 - isvavai.cz</a>

Výsledek na webu

<a href="https://verso.is.cuni.cz/pub/verso.fpl?fname=obd_publikace_handle&handle=IBJIn~crdm" target="_blank" >https://verso.is.cuni.cz/pub/verso.fpl?fname=obd_publikace_handle&handle=IBJIn~crdm</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.5751/ES-16508-300413" target="_blank" >10.5751/ES-16508-300413</a>

Jazyk výsledku

angličtina

Název v původním jazyce

From habitats to hashtags: examining online discussions about invasive species

Popis výsledku v původním jazyce

Public awareness is critical for societal support for conservation efforts, including management of biological invasions. However, traditional methods for assessing public awareness are limited, and its role as a key factor in alien species invasions remains largely unknown. The rise of participatory web and social media platforms, such as Twitter (rebranded as X), has provided opportunities to gain insight into societal perceptions through user-generated content. In this study, we assessed public discourse about invasive species on social media by analyzing over 500,000 tweets containing the term &quot;invasive species&quot; posted between 2006 and 2021. Our aim was to identify the most frequently mentioned taxa and habitats, prevailing topics, and subject matters that generated high engagement in discussions on biological invasions. We found that mammals, specifically domesticated and urban pests, were the most frequently mentioned, while aquatic habitats and those interfacing with aquatic habitats dominated the top 15 mentioned habitat types. Additionally, the use of location-based hashtags, such as the Great Lakes and Florida, suggests that people tend to be more engaged with invasive species issues in specific areas. We also observed that a relatively small subset of users contributed a disproportionately large share of retweeted content, highlighting the influence of a few key accounts. This study shows the potential of digital data for identifying prominent taxa, habitats, regions, and influential voices in invasive species discussions. Such information can help refine communication strategies, tailor policy interventions, and foster more effective public engagement in efforts to manage and mitigate the impacts of biological invasions.

Název v anglickém jazyce

From habitats to hashtags: examining online discussions about invasive species

Popis výsledku anglicky

Public awareness is critical for societal support for conservation efforts, including management of biological invasions. However, traditional methods for assessing public awareness are limited, and its role as a key factor in alien species invasions remains largely unknown. The rise of participatory web and social media platforms, such as Twitter (rebranded as X), has provided opportunities to gain insight into societal perceptions through user-generated content. In this study, we assessed public discourse about invasive species on social media by analyzing over 500,000 tweets containing the term &quot;invasive species&quot; posted between 2006 and 2021. Our aim was to identify the most frequently mentioned taxa and habitats, prevailing topics, and subject matters that generated high engagement in discussions on biological invasions. We found that mammals, specifically domesticated and urban pests, were the most frequently mentioned, while aquatic habitats and those interfacing with aquatic habitats dominated the top 15 mentioned habitat types. Additionally, the use of location-based hashtags, such as the Great Lakes and Florida, suggests that people tend to be more engaged with invasive species issues in specific areas. We also observed that a relatively small subset of users contributed a disproportionately large share of retweeted content, highlighting the influence of a few key accounts. This study shows the potential of digital data for identifying prominent taxa, habitats, regions, and influential voices in invasive species discussions. Such information can help refine communication strategies, tailor policy interventions, and foster more effective public engagement in efforts to manage and mitigate the impacts of biological invasions.

Druh

J_imp - Článek v periodiku v databázi Web of Science

CEP obor

—

OECD FORD obor

10618 - Ecology

Projekt

—

Návaznosti

I - Institucionalni podpora na dlouhodoby koncepcni rozvoj vyzkumne organizace

Rok uplatnění

2025

Kód důvěrnosti údajů

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Název periodika

Ecology and society

ISSN

—

e-ISSN

1708-3087

Svazek periodika

30

Číslo periodika v rámci svazku

4

Stát vydavatele periodika

CA - Kanada

Počet stran výsledku

16

Strana od-do

13

Kód UT WoS článku

001603725100001

EID výsledku v databázi Scopus

2-s2.0-105021410813