Exotic Species: Overview and Impacts Biology 105 22 April 2002.
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Transcript of Exotic Species: Overview and Impacts Biology 105 22 April 2002.
Exotic Species: Overview and Impacts
Biology 10522 April 2002
Exotic species:
a species which now occurs outside of the range in which it is thought to have evolved
Synonyms (with subtle differences): nonindigenous,
introduced, alien, naturalized, feral, escaped
Introduction of Exotic Species
• Humans move species around globe:– 50,000 non-indigenous species in U.S. – New Zealand has a predominantly
alien flora and fauna– 1000 of California’s 8000 plant
species are introduced
Questions about exotic species
• How do they arrive at new locations?
• What are the effects of exotic species?
• What are characteristics of successful exotic species?
• What characteristics make a habitat susceptible to invasion?
How do exotic species arrive to new habitats?
Intentional introductionsAccidental introductions
Good Intentions Gone Bad
1. Escapees from cultivation– Species brought to a new region where they
are planted (non-agricultural)• Goal practical or aesthetic
– Species able to exist without help (protection, fertilizer, extra water)• Usually adapted to similar ecological conditions
– Species establishes self-reproducing population
– May be augmented by additional introductions or escapees
Purple Loosestrife
• Native to Europe• Brought as ornamental plant• Now widely established in eastern and
midwestern U.S.• Purple loosestrife information
Agricultural Species Do Not Usually Become Established As
Exotics
Usually not hardy enough to establish self-sustaining populations– Need additional nutrients, water over
what is available in environment– Are tasty to non-human herbivores
• Lots of nutrients• Few defenses
Intentional Introductions, continued.
Goal to establish self-sustaining population in new locale– Motivation: practical or aesthetic– “Acclimitzation Societies”– Reminders of home– Examples:
• European Starling in U.S. • Opossum in Southern California
European Starling, Sturnus vulgarus
“I’ll have a starling taught to speak nothing but “Mortimer”—Hotspur, Henry IV, part I
1890: Eugene Schieffelin imports 60 starlings and releases in Central Park
2000: 200 million starlings in U.S.
Spread of European Starling
Shaded areas = breeding range;
Dots indicate records of birds in preceeding winters
Viriginia opossum, Didelphis virginiana
Opossum introduced to Southern California in 1940’s
Woody Guthrie, Tom Joad
Accidental Introductions: Agricultural
Contaminants• Annual European grasses in
California• Russian thistle in western U.S.
Russian Thistle
Russian thistle: adapted to invade via effective
dispersal
Annual Grasses in California
Accidental Introductions:
Hitchhikers
• Black rat on islands around world• Zebra mussels in fresh waters of
eastern U.S.• Brown tree snake in South Pacific• Anopheles mosquitoes in Hawaii
Zebra Mussel
• Hitchhiked in ballast of ships• First recorded in Great Lakes in • Now common • Problems:
– Economic: clogs filters, covers smooth surfaces (boats, dams, locks)
– Ecological: ultra-efficient filtration, outcompetes other plankton-feeders
Fact sheet on Zebra Mussels
Effects of Exotic Species
• Second-most important threat to native species– (behind habitat destruction)
• Have contributed to the decline of 42% of U.S. endangered and threatened species
Effects: Biology
1. Species interactions– Competition: starling– Predation: brown tree snake, Nile perch– Disease: West Nile Virus
Starlings evict less aggressive, native birds from nest holes
Brown Tree Snake (Boiga irregularis)
• native to eastern Indonesia, Solomon Islands, New Guinea, and the northern and eastern coasts of Australia.
• caused ecological, economic, and human health problems on Guam since arrived shortly after World War II.
• an aggressive predator, has caused local extinctions of native bird, bat, and lizard species.
• Fact sheet on brown tree snake
West Nile Virus
• insect-borne virus • First reported in Western Hemisphere 1999• Birds natural hosts • transmitted from infected birds to humans and other animals through the bites of infected
mosquitoes.
• USFWS information sheet
Effect of Exotic Species on Higher Level Ecological
Processes
• Nile Perch in Lake Victoria
• Tamarisk in southwestern U.S.
• Sudden Oak Death Syndrome in California?
Nile perch in Lake Victoria
• Nile Perch introduced to Lake Victoria 1955
• Voracious predators, eliminated an entire trophic level of native cichlids (a planktivorous fish)
• Lake is now choked with algae• More information
American Museum of Natural History Exhibit on Lake Victoria
Upshot:
• Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda control 6, 49, and 45 percent of the lake surface,
• Gross economic product of the lake catchment ~US$3-4 billion annually
• estimated population of 25 million people
• incomes in the range of US$90-270 per capita/year
Effects: Biology• Water availability: saltcedar or tamarisk• Information on tamarisk
Effects: Economy
• Cost to U.S. per year: $123 billion!
• U.S. Dept. Agriculture– annual productivity loss due to
exotic species – 64 crops at $7.4 billion.
• Example: glossy-winged sharpshooter
Questions about exotic species
• What are characteristics of successful exotic species?
• What characteristics make a habitat susceptible to invasion?
• Can effects of aliens be predicted?• How do we prevent bio-
homogenization?
Why did aliens prosper in New Zealand?
• Of the total New Zealand flora of 2,500 species, 500 are introduced:– introduced species account for most
of the vegetation– why were these species so
successful?• most natural habitats had been disturbed• because of low diversity and simple
structure, island ecosystems are generally more easily invaded
What can be done about exotic species?
• Prevent arrival • Monitoring of sensitive habitats for new
arrivals• Development of effective control
techniques– Biological control– Integrated pest management– Selective chemical control including genetic
engineering