Thursday, November 10, 2005

Hamtaro!

The ISW likes to bring you invasive species news from around the world. Unfortunately, a language barrier exists that can make it hard for English-speaking readers to appreciate some of this news. As a public service, the ISW is please to bring you this piece of invasive species public outreach from Japan, with translations provided via mouseover:

For the original 3-fold leaflet, provided by the Japanese Ministry of the Environment, go here (.pdf).

Update: For those of you that are oh-so-curious, here is the actual translation of the pamphlet, courtesy of The Almighty Babel Fish and the ISW:

Three Adverse Effects of Introduced Species:

1) They can influence the Japanese Ecosystem

  • They will eat native things
  • They will hybridize with native species that are close relatives
  • They will compete with natives for food (Food may be "resources" - I am not sure if the seedling is sad because it is the only one or because it is being shaded out, but I suspect the former)

2) They can cause harm to human health

  • They will poison or bite people

3) They can influence agriculture, forestry, and the fishing industry

  • They will eat crops and fish

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Maybe I'm just being a party-pooper here, but the pamphlet doesn't say anything about hamsters. It only refers to "non-native animals." I know they look like hamsters, but they're not identified as such. Okay, okay, I guess I should lighten up...

Jennifer Forman Orth said...

Dear Party Pooper,

I referred to my "Field Guide to Stick-Figures" and I can assure you that the gigantic animal pictured biting the human in Item #2 keyed out to Giant Hamster.