In this episode I am joined by Dr Kate McAlpine. Kate is a leading Weed Ecologist and is a Science Advisor at the New Zealand Department of Conservation. She has researched weeds and weed ecology comprehensively across New Zealand. Her publications span the impacts and dispersal of weeds, native seedling recruitment in the presence of weeds and mammals, and native plant succession in woody weed stands. I hope you enjoy this episode. Links to Kate’s work mentioned in the podcast: Native regeneration in woody weed stands - https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344324539_Understory_vegetation_provides_clues_to_succession_in_woody_weed_stands List of Environmental Weeds in New Zealand -  https://www.researchgate.net/publication/383265349_List_of_environmental_weeds_in_New_Zealand_2024 Karaka paper - (PDF) Karaka (Corynocarpus laevigatus): native taonga (treasure) or environmental weed? (researchgate.net) Smart Weed Alert Tool (SWAT) - https://www.gbif.org.nz/post/2024/weed-alert-tool/ iNaturalist - https://inaturalist.nz  You can see more of Kate’s work on her Insta account: @katemcweedatwork   About the podcast: Hi! I’m Dr Adam Forbes. I am an Ecologist who specialises in the restoration of forest ecosystems. The Nature Conversations Podcast isn’t about me, however, the purpose of the podcast is to capture knowledge and insights from remarkable people and profile important issues for ecology and nature conversation. Supporting the podcast and connecting with me: If you like the content of the podcast, you can support its creation in the following ways: 1 – following, liking, rating and sharing the podcast or episodes with others, 2 – via my Patreon account (you can even support for free) https://patreon.com/DrAdamForbes  If you’d like to contact me, you can do so via email: adam@forbesecology.co.nz or via my website https://www.forbesecology.co.nz  You can also find me on socials: Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/dradamforbes  Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/adamforbesnz  LinkedIn - http://linkedin.com/in/dr-adam-forbes-58873a55 Youtube - https://youtube.com/@dradamforbes?si=FzxXRUqdPd9zxPlE