plagues and swarms invasive species ecology. invasive species invasive species are defined as...
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Plagues and Swarms Invasive Species Ecology
Invasive Species• Invasive species are defined as non-native exotic organisms
whose introduction to new areas may result in harmful effects on human and environmental health and economic costs
• Invasive species are one of the most important threats to biodiversity – Approximately 50,000 invasive species in the USA – Nearly 5,000 plant species– 10,000 person hours in Smoky Mountain National Park
(http://www.invasive.org/eastern/)
Water Hyacinth
Emerald Ash Borer
Zebra Mussel European StarlingEmerald Ash Borer
- How are species able to dominate the habitats they invade?
- What impacts do invasive species have on species diversity and ecosystem processes?
- What determines the invasibility of habitats?
Invasion Ecology: General Questions
Invasive species impacts
http://www.emeraldashborer.info/buprestid
Based on a 2005 Lexington, Kentucky, street tree survey- it is estimated that there are more than 10,000 ash trees in the Urban Service Area (LFUCG 2007).
The ash component of Louisville Kentucky's tree population is 17%.
http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive/ferals/index.html
Invasive species impacts (critters)
European wild rabbit (Oryctolagus coniculus)– Invasive in Australia
– Causes damage to the environment and agricultural operations
– Difficult to control because native predators now rely on the feral rabbit as a food resource
http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/animals/bts.shtml
Invasive species impacts (critters)
Brown Tree Snake (Boiga irregularis)– Native in Australia and Indonesia
– Invasive in Hawai’i
– Preys on native lizards and birds
– Causes major power outages because it climbs on electrical wires
http://dnr.wi.gov/invasives/fact/zebra.htm
Invasive species impacts (critters)
Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha)– Native in Europe and Asia
Invasive species impacts (critters)
Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha)– Native in Europe and Asia
Invasive species impacts (critters)
Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha)– Native in Europe and Asia
http://dnr.wi.gov/invasives/fact/zebra.htm
Invasive species impacts (critters)
Zebra Mussel (Dreissena polymorpha)– Native in Europe and Asia
– Extremly successful in filter feeding• Decrease food available for other aquatic
organisms
• Makes the water clear
• Increase in aquatic plant production and blue-green algae
– Clogs drainage pipes
– Approx. $5 billion in damages to the Great Lakes
http://www.seagrant.umn.edu/ais/rustycrayfish_invader
Invasive species impacts (critters)
Rusty Crayfish (Orconectes rusticus)
http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/ailalt/all.html#SuccessionalStatus
Invasive species impacts (plants)
Tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus altissima)– Native to China
– Allelochemical properties and a distinct small
– Invasive throughout the USA• Oak-hickory and Maple-birch forests
– Early successional species
Invasive species impacts (critters)
Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii)– Native to China and surrounding Asian region– Introduced to the USA in 1896 (Luken, J. O. and J. W. Thieret 1995)
Fruit of L. maackii Flower of L. maackii
Photos: Ryan W. McEwan
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=loma6
Invasive species impacts (critters)
Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii)– Native to China and surrounding Asian region– Introduced to the USA in 1896 (Luken, J. O. and J. W. Thieret 1995)
– Suite of invasive characteristics (Gorchov and Trisel 2003; Hutchinson
and Vankat 1997; McEwan et al. 2009)
• Successful in disturbed and edge habitats
Black Oak Park in summer
Invasive species impacts (critters)
Amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii)– Native to China and surrounding Asian region– Introduced to the USA in 1896 (Luken, J. O. and J. W. Thieret 1995)
– Suite of invasive characteristics (Gorchov and Trisel 2003; Hutchinson
and Vankat 1997; McEwan et al. 2009)
• Successful in disturbed and edge habitats • Has a long growing season• Allelopathic capabilities
– Herbs (Dorning and Cipollini 2006; Cipollini et al. 2008)
– Insects (Cipollini et al. 2008; McEwan et al. 2009)
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/cerc/danoff-burg/invasion_bio/inv_spp_summ/Anoplophora%20glabripennis.html
Invasive species impacts (insects)
Asian Longhorned Beetle (Anophlophora glabripennis)
– Native to China, Japan, and Korea
– Invasive in NY, NJ, and PA
– Larva eat away at woody tissue of many types of hardwood trees
– Estimated costs of approx. $3.5 billion USD/year
http://www.emeraldashborer.info/
Invasive species impacts (insects)
Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis)
– Native to eastern Russia, China, Japan, and Korea
– Specialist invasive
– Invasive throughout the northern parts of the Midwest and East coast of the USA and Canada
– Larva eat at the woody tissue of Ash trees
Invasive species impacts (fungi)
At the end of the 1800s: - American chestnut was
found throughout much of the Eastern Deciduous Forest.
- Chestnut was among the largest of eastern trees.
- Pure stands were common- (> 80 % Basal Area in
some stands)
From: Paillet and Rutter (1989)
Range of American chestnut
Photos from The Canadian Chestnut Council:
- In 1904, chestnuts in the New York area began exhibiting a previously unknown canker.
- This disease, caused by the fungal pathogen Cryphonectria parasitica, spread throughout the native range of the American chestnut.
- By 1960, chestnut had been rendered functionally extinct as a canopy tree throughout its native range.