Many alien invasive plants disperse against the direction of stream flow in riparian areas

► Propagule pressure plays an important role in alien plant invasion into riparian areas. ► We modeled the occurrence of 10 alien plants to evaluate successful invasion, focusing on propagule pressure from both the neighboring and local areas. ► Both propagule pressure from neighboring and local effects played important roles in alien plant invasion. ► Propagule supply against the stream direction was dominant. ► Alien plants may not depend on hydrochory in riparian areas any time.