Non-Native Species - Beatrice the Biologist

We humans have this nasty habit of thinking we know everything. (In my case it’s true, though. I do know everything.) Sometimes we can only learn the truth–that we really don’t have a clue–the hard way. We know especially little about how large ecosystems function, and nothing makes this more obvious than introducing non-native species.

People seem to think that toying with an ecosystem is like cooking.

I’m not entirely making this up. This stuff happens.

This can and mostly likely will spiral further out of control…

Okay, I did make this part up. But still… the point is that messing around with ecosystems can quickly become dangerous and, as you can see, really ridiculous.

When I think of non-native species I usually think of animals, but the problems are just as severe with plants, if not worse. A fantastic example is Kudzu (sounds like the plant’s rapper name, no?).

This ambitious vine was introduced into the southern areas of the United States in the 1800s because of claims that its strong roots were good for controlling erosion. Kudzu, which is originally from Asia, turns out to absolutely adore the climate in the South. It can grow up to 1 foot per day while it chokes the area’s native plants. And because it’s from out of town, it has no natural pests or predators that can keep it in check. It just grows… and grows… and grows.

There’s no way to get rid of it, save for detonating an atomic bomb in the area. Seriously, what are you going to do? Trim it? It can grow a foot per day. Are you going to spread 7 million acres (that’s how much it monopolizes) with caustic chemicals? I don’t think so.

Part of what makes us human is testing our limits and exploring our surroundings. That’s great. But we really have to quit thinking that ecosystems are made of play-doh. They’re not toys; you can’t play with them. You can’t shape them into something else. Ecosystems are more like porcelain. Don’t touch! You’ll break it, and they don’t make super glue that works on the ecosystem level yet.

If you want to continue to nerd out (and I know you want to), you can check out the U.S. list of non-native species: invasivespeciesinfo.gov You’re welcome!