The most dangerous invasive animal species that destroy entire ecosystems. How do invasive animal species appear? Biodiversity Conservation Strategy

Incredible Facts

We have already written on the pages of our site about the harm that the so-called invasive species animals and plants - that is, animals and plants that did not originally live in a certain ecosystem, but were brought there by people, or got there by accident (through a hurricane, flood, and so on). And this is not surprising - after all, getting into a completely different system, many of these species inflict irreparable harm, threatening other species and disturbing the precarious balance that existed in a particular region due to its isolation from other ecosystems.

So who are they, these troublemakers and "killers" of ecosystems and how to deal with them?! As experience shows, it is sometimes simply useless to deal with such species. However, the fight against the fight is different, according to scientists dealing with the problem of invasive species, and advise us ... to eat them! Researchers are confident that this is the only way to save ecosystems suffering from the invasion of "aggressive" species. Let's look at the five most accessible animal and plant species, which researchers strongly recommend that we eat as quickly and as much as possible in order to restore balance in nature.

Bullfrog

No, a bullfrog (or as it is also called - frog-ox) is called that way not at all because its meat tastes like beef. And it's not even about the size of this amphibian, which is one of the largest species in the frog family. There are individual specimens weighing up to 600 grams! It's all about the peculiar sound made by males during the courtship period, which resembles lowing. In appearance, this frog looks very unappetizing and even repulsive - all because of the large size of its eardrum, which is not inferior in size to the eye.

The bullfrog has a unique ability to adapt. This species originally lived east of the Rocky Mountains in western Canada and the United States. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when such a native French dish as frog legs was tasted in America, the bullfrog began to be bred west of the Rocky Mountains. There, this amphibian began to multiply in large numbers, and he managed to survive even paw eating fashion, which was due to the fact that this dish was considered dietary. These frogs ate everything that they met on the way and fit in size. Because of this, other types of amphibians, such as, for example, red-footed frog have been threatened with extinction. Undoubtedly, the bullfrog, having taken root and bred outside the area of ​​\u200b\u200bits original habitat, endangered biodiversity of other ecosystems. Thus, scientists see the only way to restore balance in eating these amphibians.

Turnip

What could be simpler ... no, not steamed, but just turnips? However, the turnip is not as simple as it seems! This type of plant is characterized by a high degree of survival. The turnip has been known and popular in northern Europe since 2000 years ago. Actually, this view comes from there, apparently. About 1500 years ago, the turnip appeared in India. The great popularity of this plant is due to the fact that turnips were not only food for people, but also feed for livestock. This fact promised great economic benefits to those who first began to import turnips to other regions and led to the uncontrolled spread of this species there.

Even though the turnip contains a lot of water, it is very nutritious and boasts a high content of a substance such as carotene, which is known to be an important element in the human diet. In our country, turnips are extremely popular, and even became the heroine of a well-known folk tale. Scientists are sure that people in those regions where it is not customary to eat turnips so widely, and where it is considered an invasive species, have only one way out - start actively eating turnips!

american jellyfish

The American jellyfish is a very voracious creature, which is also able to move very quickly, which gives it the ability to explore large water areas in a very short time. It is because of this species that the production of black caviar in the southern part of the Caspian Sea is on the verge of collapse, as sturgeon fish species are endangered. Millions of these jellyfish appear annually in spring and autumn off the coast of Georgia, USA. Nets of fishing trawlers during these periods literally stuffed with these animals, which seriously hinders fishing in this region. These jellyfish cause great inconvenience to numerous swimmers, and just vacationers on the beaches (fortunately, these animals are not poisonous, and they don’t sting in principle). However, all these reasons are more than enough to seriously think about how to begin to cope with this invasion.

How? Of course, by eating jellyfish, scientists assure! What is there, you may ask, looking at the photo? Do not rush to conclusions. An adult American jellyfish is able to reach twenty centimeters in diameter. In addition, the American jellyfish is considered delicacy, which, nevertheless, has been present on the tables in many Asian countries for thousands of years. On top of that, these jellyfish are of great medical value. Recent studies show that the protein mass of these jellyfish is collagen by as much as 80 percent! Collagen is the basis of the connective tissue of the body and provides its strength and elasticity. This cellular material can be used to restore cartilage, bones and even teeth. Collagen is also able to control the development of arthritis. As you can see, there is no reason not to eat the American jellyfish!

lion fish

Lionfish, striped lionfish, zebra fish, zebra lionfish. This fish has many names, so you can rightfully start a real criminal case against it, especially since there is something for it! The lionfish originally comes from indo-pacific region. However, she managed to penetrate into the Caribbean Sea and thoroughly settle there. Such an invasion is explained by hurricanes and some other natural phenomena that forced the lion fish to "reconsider" their habitats. Now it can be found along the entire east coast, from Rhode Island in the north of America to Columbia in the south. Protected by poisonous spines, the lionfish is essentially a voracious and very dangerous predator for many species. Lion fish do not hunt alone. They are actually corner their prey, forming a kind of barrier with the help of their pectoral fins. A lion fish is able to quickly attack and swallow its prey literally whole (if it suits its size, of course!).

Lionfish have virtually no natural enemies in nature.. Thanks to this fact, this fish quickly multiplied and began to threaten the biological system of the coral reef in the Caribbean. She put endangered most of the native species living in the reef area. Moreover, both the predatory inhabitants of the reefs, which simply did not have enough food due to competition, and non-predators were hit. The natural enemy of the lionfish in that region could be sea ​​bass, however, its population has greatly decreased due to the intensive catching of perch by fishermen. Thus, man unwittingly helped the invasion of an "aggressive" species that endangered entire coral reef ecosystem in the Caribbean. The only way to save the inhabitants of the reef is to start eating lion fish intensively, especially since its meat is delicious. It remains only to figure out how to catch this particular species from the whole variety of species of the Red Sea.

Crayfish

Crayfish, due to its ability to gradually take control of the entire range of its habitat, also fell into the category of animals that must be eaten. as much and as often as possible. Solely in order to save the ecosystem, of course, and not because boiled crayfish meat goes well with beer! In the case of crayfish, of course, scientists do not need to prove and explain anything, since this creature is eaten almost all over the world. Moreover, at some times people ate crayfish so intensively that, coupled with gradually polluted water bodies, this species itself was endangered in some places. However, while there are a lot of crayfish and enough for everyone!

As with other edible crustaceans, not all parts of the body of a cancer can be eaten. Basically, in many dishes such as crayfish soup, for example, only the tail part of the crayfish is used. In other dishes, despite the fact that the crayfish is served whole (for example, crayfish gratini) also eat only some parts of his body. Of course, crayfish claws are also eaten, inside of which there is very tasty and tender meat. For this, however, it makes sense to choose only sufficiently large individuals. In many countries it is accepted suck out the contents of the cancer's head, especially if it was cooked with special seasonings. Gourmets like to suck on the head of cancer, periodically bite off its tail. Remarkably, other crustaceans are often also highly successful invasive species, which means, according to scientists, you should boldly replenish your home cookbook with new recipes. Bon Appetit!

Invasive species, or invasive species (from lat. invasio - « invasion, attack, raid; violence; violent capture"") - a biological species that has spread as a result of human activities, the spread of which threatens biological diversity. The initial reason for their spread is the intended or unintentional introduction of organisms outside their natural habitats.

Invasive animals

Huge losses are incurred by agriculture and forestry from insect pests, a significant part of which are invasive species.

Invasive plants

The definition of invasive plant species often includes an assessment of harm from an economic point of view. However, there are neutral or useful invasive species, the so-called "soft invasive species", whose environmental or economic damage is negligible.

In Western classifications, among the totality of invasive species (which are understood as alien species that can spread over large areas), there are “transformers” (eng. transformers), species that can change ecosystems over a large area. The influence of transformers may consist in excessive consumption (water, oxygen, light) or resource donation (nitrogen), counteracting or, conversely, strengthening soil erosion processes, accumulation of harmful substances and other influences.

In the Russian classification, the concept of a transformer roughly corresponds to the concept agriophyte, and invasive species include agriophytes (plants that have invaded natural cenoses) and epecophytes(plants spreading through anthropogenic habitats).

see also

Notes

Literature

• Elton Ch. Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants = The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants. By Charles S. Elton. London, 1958 / Charles Elton / Trans. from English. Yu. I. Lashkevich; Ed. and with preface. prof. N. P. Naumova. - M.: Publishing house of foreign literature, 1960. - 232 p.
• Tokhtar V. K., Mazur N. V. Analysis of invasive species in Central Russia // Scientific Bulletin of the Belgorod State University. Series: Natural Sciences. 2010. No. 21 (92). Issue. 13. S. 20-23.
• Vinogradova Yu.K. Code for managing the behavior of invasive alien species in botanical gardens // Botanical gardens in the modern world: theoretical and applied research: Proceedings of the All-Russian Scientific Conference / Ed. A. S. Demidov. - M. : KMK Scientific Publications Partnership, 2011. Archived on May 12, 2012.
• Yu. K. Vinogradova , S. R. Maiorov , A. A. Notov Black Book of Flora of the Tver Region: Alien Plant Species in the Ecosystems of the Tver Region / Ch. botanical garden them. N. V. Tsitsina. - M.: Association of scientific publications KMK, 2011. - 292, p. - (Alien species of Russia). - 550 copies. - ISBN 978-5-87317-804-9.
• Kuklina A., Vinogradova Yu.

Alla Kuklina,
Candidate of Biological Sciences, Main Botanical Garden. N. V. Tsitsina RAS
Yulia Vinogradova,
Doctor of Biological Sciences, Main Botanical Garden named after. N. V. Tsitsina RAS
"Science and Life" №5, 2015

Over the past 200 years, the flora of many countries of the world has changed significantly. Almost a third of the total number of species is now made up of alien plants that have successfully taken root in their new homeland. Seeds or cuttings of unknown plants come with transport, containers from imported fruits or vegetables, or as an admixture with imported goods, especially grain; Our compatriots also bring them from tourist trips.

Invasive plant species

The most aggressive alien species, which displace local, native plants, are classified into a special group - invasive species. Today, there are more than 300 invasive species in 57 countries of the world; in the flora of central Russia - so far 52 species, but this list is constantly updated due to new "uninvited" guests that violate natural communities. Among them are Michurin's chokeberry (chokeberry), wrinkled rose, rudbeckia hard-haired.

A significant part of invasive species came to Europe from America. For quite a long time, some of them, such as ash-leaved maple and Pennsylvania ash, were grown as cultivated plants, and only later they began to actively populate neighboring territories.

“Escaped” from the collections of botanical gardens are small-flowered galinzoga, prickly echinocystis, leafy string, fragrant chamomile, iron-bearing touchy.

The gardens still grow goldenrod, Jerusalem artichoke, Caucasian comfrey, perennial daisy, erect oxalis (especially the purple-leaved form), filiform veronica, spiked shadberry, and sea buckthorn. Fragments of rhizomes and shoots with seeds of these plants, removed from the plots, remain in the soil for a long time and can spread over considerable distances, creating large colonies capable of populating all free spaces in a decade.

Among the invasive species there are plants that are dangerous to human health. First of all, it is ragweed. In the southern regions of Russia, especially in the Stavropol Territory, Rostov and Volgograd regions, its pollen is one of the strongest allergens. During the flowering period of ragweed, 40% of people suffering from hay fever are forced to take sick leave. Ambrosia pollen circulates in the air outside of these regions as well.

In Russia, ragweed was first registered in 1918, but this plant came to Europe half a century earlier. The fight against ambrosia requires a lot of money. In Germany, for example, almost 20% of all state spending on the elimination of weeds is spent on controlling its resettlement.

Do not forget that the pollen of ash-leaved maple, Pennsylvania ash, as well as cocklebur cyclaena can also cause allergies.

Invasive species are a danger to our nature. Getting into meadows or forests, they not only compete with local native species for light and nutrients, but subsequently even displace some of them or, forming hybrids with them, contribute to a change in the genetic diversity of plant communities.

A significant problem is created by the overgrowth of farmland with multi-leaved lupine and oriental goat's rue. In the forests where lupine is introduced, mushrooms stop growing, because nitrogen-fixing bacteria in lupine tubers transform the soil, and an excess of nitrogen negatively affects the mycelium. Increasingly, one can meet in the meadows and wastelands of the Moscow, Kaluga and Kursk regions huge thickets of North American plants: giant goldenrod, lobed echinocystis, Canadian small-flowered. With a strong clogging of the fields with the last of the listed plants, the yield is reduced, and the dry stems of this weed are hammered into the combine. Its appearance on vineyards inhibits the growth of the vine.

Many are familiar with the giant umbrellas of Sosnovsky's hogweed, a widespread weed that inhabited large meadows and banks of reservoirs. This plant is capable of causing photodermatitis, which manifests itself in the form of skin burns that do not heal for a long time.

For animal husbandry, invasive species are dangerous, classified as quarantine weeds, among them - few-flowered cenhrus. On the territory of Russia, this plant penetrated up to the Volgograd and Belgorod regions. Cenchrus is an annual grass with a flat branched stem that can take root at nodes in contact with the soil. This dangerous species settles, attaching to human clothing, animal hair, sticking into car tires. Moves along with the streams of melt water. Its spikelets with a prickly wrapper cause long-term non-healing mouth ulcers in pets, which can later become a hotbed of serious infectious diseases. Getting on arable lands and pastures, in gardens and orchards, tsenhrus reduces the yield of forage grasses, corn, melons and row crops.

The economic damage in agriculture, forestry and water management from biological invasions is enormous. According to estimates by the UK Environment Agency, the cost of eradicating the aggressively growing impatiens iron in England and Wales alone could reach more than 210 million euros.

American ecologist David Peimentel has calculated that the damage from invasive species worldwide is more than 1.4 trillion dollars, that is, approximately 5% of the global economy. In total, the United States loses $137 billion from uninvited plants, India - $117 billion, Brazil - $50 billion.

The costs of collecting information about invasive species are also high. The cost of investments in the DAISIE information project (containing data on 2122 alien species in 27 EU countries) reaches 3.4 million euros, and up to 84 thousand euros. However, in any case, such investments are significantly lower than the costs associated with the control of alien species, which exceed 12 billion euros per year in Europe.

Biodiversity Conservation Strategy

Scientists in many countries are concerned about the negative impact of phytoinvasions on agriculture, human health and biological diversity. They understand how great the risk of penetration of dangerous plant species from the territories of neighboring states is, therefore, they unite efforts to control the spread of aggressive species.

In 1992, in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), during the UN Conference on Environment and Development of the Environment, the Convention on Biological Diversity was submitted for signing by all states, which provided for a number of measures to prevent biological invasions, mitigate their consequences and extensive monitoring.

In 2010, the conference of the countries-participants of the UN Convention on Biodiversity in the city of Nagoya (Japan) approved a new strategic plan for the conservation of biodiversity and formulated 20 points that contribute to the conservation of the planet's wildlife. Here is one of them: “By 2020, invasive alien species and the vectors of their penetration into natural communities should be identified and prioritized. The most threatening (aggressive) species should be tightly controlled or destroyed, and measures to control the distribution pathways of such species to prevent their introduction and naturalization should be developed and adopted.

In order to reduce the damage from unwanted plants, specialists will have to continue a comprehensive study of various areas of invasive biology, study the features of the ongoing process in a number of species, identify their transit routes and directions for the introduction of alien species, and learn how to predict and prevent mass phytoinvasions. An essential foundation for solving this problem will be the creation of a unified database on invasive species in Russia and the development of legislative acts aimed at controlling the spread and destruction of dangerous plants.

Mnemiopsis leidyi is one of the representatives of ctenophores, creatures that resemble jellyfish, but belong to a separate type. Initially, these voracious small predators lived only on the coast of North and South America, but in 1982 they were accidentally brought to the Black Sea. Ctenophores began to eat plankton so actively that it led to an ecological disaster.

The Nile perch is a real giant among ray-finned fish, reaching a size of up to two meters and a mass of up to two hundred kilograms. In 1954, these monsters were introduced into Lake Victoria, which led to the extinction of about 200 other fish species.

Humans are the kings of invasiveness. Their number reaches seven billion, thanks to their activities, many species of animals and plants have become extinct, they cause enormous damage to the environment. No one is able to change the world like people do - and this is a reason for both pride and horror.

Cats have been transported by humans all over the planet - this is one of the most successful and dangerous invasive species. Thanks to their hunting skills, many species of birds and small animals disappeared from the islands colonized by Europeans in past centuries. But this did not weaken the love for cats in humanity.

Rhytididae are a family of carnivorous snails known as "cannibal snails". In the middle of the last century, they were brought to the islands of the Indian and Pacific Ocean, without expecting a special catch. However, these gastropods have begun to devour any life forms smaller than themselves, multiplying at a frantic pace - and there is no way to get rid of them.

The Chinese mitten crab was considered a delicacy in its homeland, but it was brought into the waters of Europe and the United States by accident. Since 1912, the crab has spread over a vast territory, damaging the property of fishermen for hundreds of thousands of dollars every year. Crabs dig deep holes, damage nets and dams, spread dangerous diseases.

Yeah, aka the cane toad is the second largest toad in the world, reaching 24 cm in length and weighing over a kilogram. She is very poisonous, and actively uses this for hunting and protection. Introduced to Australia for pest control, toads have become pests themselves, killing many other species with their poison.

Black rat. It is hard to imagine that black rats once lived exclusively in India, as now they can be found all over the world. They live in any kind of home, eat anything, and cause massive damage to wiring and infrastructure.

The brown boiga is a small one with a weak poison, completely harmless to humans. But when these snakes were accidentally brought to the island of Guam, a catastrophe happened - in a few decades, snakes ate almost all local lizards and birds, as well as pollinating insects, which led to the death of many plant species.

Lionfish are beautiful, tasty and poisonous at the same time - a strange combination, but the fact is there. They live and hunt in coral reefs, and thanks to man they have spread far beyond their usual territories. Lionfish pose a serious threat to the fauna of the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.

It is easy to guess that many invasive species have been misplaced by human activities, and Homo sapiens itself is certainly the star of this list. What are the other candidates?

In the modern era, either intentionally or accidentally, a great many species have been introduced into areas where they never existed.

The introduction of many species was due to the following factors.

European colonization . Arriving at new settlement sites in New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, and wanting to make the surroundings more familiar to the eye and provide themselves with traditional entertainment (in particular, hunting), Europeans brought hundreds of European species of birds and mammals there.

Horticulture and agriculture . A large number of species of ornamental plants, agricultural crops and pasture grasses are introduced and grown in new territories. Many of these species "broke free" and settled in local communities.

Overwhelming majority exotic species, that is, species that have found themselves outside their natural range due to human activity, do not take root in new places, with the exception of a certain number of species that are settled there and become invasive species, that is, those that increase in number due to the original species.

Reasons for the invasiveness of exotic species:

1.Competition with natives for a limiting resource.

2. Direct predation.

In the US, invasive exotic species pose a threat to 49% of endangered species; more than 70 species of exotic fish, 80 species of exotic mollusks, 200 species of exotic plants and 2,000 exotic insects now live here.

The swamps of North America are dominated by exotic perennials: loosestrife from Europe and Japanese honeysuckle. Intentionally introduced insects, such as European honey bees(Apis mellifera)and bumblebees(Bombus spp.),and accidentally introduced Richter ants and African honey bees(A. mellifera adansonii or A. mellifera scutelld)created huge populations. These invasive species can have a devastating effect on the local insect fauna, resulting in the decline of many species in the area. In some areas of the southern United States, due to the invasion of exotic Richter ants, the diversity of insect species has decreased by 40%.

Invasive species in aquatic habitats

The influence of invasive species can be especially strong in lakes, rivers and inland seas.

Freshwater bodies of water are like islands in the ocean (just the other way around). Therefore, they are particularly vulnerable to the introduction of exotic species. In reservoirs for the sake of commercial or sport fishing, species that are not inherent in them are often introduced. Many species of fish have been unintentionally introduced into inland seas as a result of canal construction and the transport of ballast water by ships. Often, exotic species are larger and more aggressive than the natural fish fauna, and as a result of competition and outright predation, they can gradually drive native fish species to extinction.

In North America, one of the most notable invasions was in the Great Lakes in 1988. . river mussel (Dreissena pofymorpha). This small striped animal from the Caspian Sea was brought from Europe by tankers. In two years, in some parts of Lake Erie, the number of zebra mussel reached 700 thousand individuals per 1 sq. km. km, destroyed many species of molluscs and fish.

The rabbits brought to Australia have multiplied uncontrollably and brought native plants to complete extinction. Currently, efforts to control rabbits are focused on the importation into Australia of pathogens that selectively affect rabbits.