Download Invasive species Names Questions What are the different ways that

Invasive species
Names
Questions
1. What are the different ways that introduced species affect our environment?
2. Describe the kinds of species that have been introduced around the world, causing problems with local
species.
3. What things can we do to limit the spread of introduced species?
4. How does the problem of introduced species compare to other environmental problems that we face
today?
5. Why is change of an entire habitat the greatest impact of introduced species?
6. Which introduced species can cause problems in land/terrestrial habitats? In water/aquatic habitats?
7. What is hybridization or cross-breeding, and which introduced species are causing problems by crossbreeding with native species?
8. How have people and their activities helped species move from one part of the world to another?
9. Which introduced species have been beneficial? (think of food, crops, and pets)
10. Why do you think introduced species cost national economies so much? What kinds of costs might be
involved? (an example: U.S. costs are $137 billion per year)
11. Why do you think that some species are beneficial and some are harmful to our environment?
12. Simberloff said that 49% of endangered species are in trouble because of introduced species. What are
ways that introduced species could threaten the continued survival of native populations?
13. What are the types of activities of an introduced species that could cause disruption to a local
environment?
14. Simberloff mentioned that the North American gray squirrel causes disruption in Great Britain and Italy.
Why are they not causing those same problems in their native habitats in North America?
15. The exotic pet business can contribute to the decline of imperiled wildlife populations in their native
habitats. How might the exotic pet trade also become a problem of introduced species in a new habitat?
16. How can the simple human activity of fishing contribute to the introduction of alien species?
Name
Period
Poster on Introduced Species
What are some of the species in your communities that have been introduced from other countries?
Create a poster about these species. Include the following information.
 Organism’s common and scientific name (10 pts)
 Picture of organism (5 pts)
 Description, habitat and range of organism (15 pts)
 What problems are they causing? (15 pts)
 What impact is it causing on native species? (15 pts)
 Where did the species come from? (10 pts)
 How did it traveled to the new habitat? (10 pts)
 What steps have been taken or could be taken to solve the problem? (20 pts)
(Grading will include accurate information as well as the readability of the information.)
Use the following web sites to obtain information.
http://www.gainvasives.org/
http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/index.shtml
http://www.issg.org/database/welcome/
http://www.audubon.org/campaign/invasives/index.shtm
http://www.invasivespecies.gov/
http://www.gaeppc.org/list.cfm
Nutria Myocastor coypus
Choose an organism from the following list.
Hydrilla Hydrilla verticillata
Flathead catfish Pylodictis olivaris
Kudzu Pueraria montana var. lobata
Lionfish Pterois volitans
West Nile Virus Flavivirus
Cane toad Bufo marinus
Nine-banded armadillo Dasypus novemcinctus
Zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha
Pig Sus scrofa
Burmese python Python molurus ssp. bivittatus
European starling Sturnus vulgaris
Africanized honey bee Apis mellifera scutellata
Asian swamp eel Monopterus albus
Japanese beetle Popillia japonica
Bark beetle Hylurgops palliatus
Monk Parakeet Myiopsitta monachus
Red imported fire ant Solenopsis invicta
Water hyacinth Eichhornia crassipes
Japanese Honeysuckle
(Lonicera japonica)
Twining vine, which has flowers
that are double-tongued, opening
white and fading to yellow.
Intentionally introduced in the
early 1800s from Eastern Asia as an
ornamental, for erosion control and
wildlife cover.
Forest margins and right-of-ways as
well as under dense canopies.
Affects biodiversity through the
displacement of native species.
Japanese honeysuckle is an evergreen to semievergreen vine that can be found either trailing or
climbing to over 80 ft. (24 m) in length. Leaves are
opposite, sessile, pubescent, oval and 1 to 2.5 in. (2.56.4 cm) long. Flowering occurs from April to July, when
showy, fragrant, tubular, whitish-pink to yellow flowers
develop in the axils of the leaves. Fruits develop in the
fall and are small, shiny black berries. Japanese
honeysuckle invades a variety of habitats including
forest floors, canopies, roadsides, wetlands, and
disturbed areas. Japanese honeysuckle can girdle small
saplings by twining around them, and it can form dense
mats in the canopies of trees, shading everything below.
A native of eastern Asia, it was first introduced into
North America in 1806 in Long Island, NY. Japanese
honeysuckle has been planted widely throughout the
United States as an ornamental, for erosion control, and
for wildlife habitat.
honeysuckles for pollinators, resulting in reduced
seed set for native species. In addition, the fruits of
exotic bush honeysuckles, while abundant and rich
in carbohydrates, do not offer migrating birds the
high-fat, nutrient-rich food sources needed for long
flights that are supplied by native plant species.
ECOLOGICAL THREAT: In North America,
Japanese honeysuckle has few natural enemies
which allows it to spread widely and out-compete
native plant species. Its evergreen to semi-evergreen
nature gives it an added advantage over native
species in many areas. Shrubs and young trees can
be killed by girdling when vines twist tightly around
stems and trunks, cutting off the flow of water
through the plant. Dense growths of honeysuckle
covering vegetation can gradually kill plants by
blocking sunlight from reaching their leaves.
Vigorous root competition also helps Japanese
honeysuckle spread and displace neighboring native
vegetation.
DISTRIBUTION IN THE UNITED STATES:
Japanese honeysuckle occurs across the southern
U.S. from California to New England and the Great
Lakes region. Escaped populations also occur in
Hawaii. Severe winter temperatures and low
precipitation may limit its distribution in northern
latitudes and in the West, respectively. Click here to
see a distribution map.
HABITAT IN THE UNITED STATES: A
ubiquitous invader, Japanese honeysuckle thrives in
a wide variety of habitats including fields, forests,
wetlands, barrens, and all types of disturbed lands.
Chuck Bargeron, University of Georgia, Bugwood.org
ECOLOGICAL THREAT: Exotic bush
honeysuckles can rapidly invade and overtake a site,
forming a dense shrub layer that crowds and shades
out native plant species. They alter habitats by
decreasing light availability, by depleting soil
moisture and nutrients, and possibly by releasing
toxic chemicals that prevent other plant species
from growing in the vicinity. Exotic bush
honeysuckles may compete with native bush
BACKGROUND: Japanese honeysuckle was
introduced to the U.S. in the early to mid-1800's as
an ornamental plant, for erosion control, and for
wildlife forage and cover. Its highly fragrant
flowers provide a tiny drop of honey-flavored
nectar enjoyed by children.
BIOLOGY & SPREAD: Growth and spread of
Japanese honeysuckle is through vegetative (plant
growth) and sexual (seed) means. It produces long
vegetative runners that develop roots where stem
and leaf junctions (nodes) come in contact with
moist soil. Underground stems (rhizomes) help to
establish and spread the plant locally. Long distance
dispersal is by birds and other wildlife that readily
consume the fruits and defecate the seeds at various
distances from the parent plant.