Gray Area

A new study just out in the Journal of Ornithology says that contrary to current thinking, American gray squirrels are actually not linked to the population declines of most native woodland bird species in England. BBC News has the story.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Squirrel?

Britain is apparently trying to eat its way out of a grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) invasion, according to this report from the New York Times. Squirrel has become a very trendy option at butcheries, and restaurants have been serving up such dishes as "Squirrel, Peking Duck-style" and, of course, Squirrel Pasties. As the interest in cooking and eating gray squirrel in the UK appears to be driven by popular culture, the movement is not likely to contribute to its eradication, but may perhaps raise awareness about this invasive species.

If this kind of cookery piques your interest, you'll want to click over to the NYT's companion article about preparing squirrel.

Tip of the virtual hat to Michael K. for sending in a link to this story. Original of the photo above by law_keven via Flickr (CC-licensed)

Psyllid Sting

The Telegraph has a report today about plans to introduce a biological control to Britain in the hopes of squashing the invasion of Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica, Reynoutria japonica, Polygonum cuspidatum, etc. etc.) in that country. This news is significant not because of the control (a sap-sucking insect) or the weed (perhaps the very bane of the UK) but for the fact that it would be the first introduced species ever approved for use as a biological control in Britain. The proposal still needs to go through a public review, so the psyllids would be on the attack no sooner than the summer of 2009. The insect in question appears to be Aphalara itadori, a psyllid that attacks knotweed stands in its native Japan. You can check out a photo of it here (scroll almost all the way down the page).

Ghoul Of Fish

Yikes - it seems that the giant snakehead (Channa micropeltes) has made an appearance in British waters. According to this report from the Telegraph, an angler hoping to catch a pike on the River Witham grabbed a two-foot-long, three pound Asian snakehead fish instead. This may be the first record of this species in UK waters.

The story is getting lots of media coverage, with the usual thorough job done by the BBC, but the best title so far is going to METRO.co.uk, who proclaimed, "Man-eating 'psycho' fish found in UK."

Thanks to budak for sending in a link to this story.

Native Or Not: You Make The Call

(Another installment in the very infrequent series)

The North-West Evening Mail is reporting that efforts are currently underway to get beech trees (Fagus sylvatica) declared as native in Northwest England, in order to protect them from being cut down. The evidence being presented in support of the change in classification is ancient pollen indicating beech was present back in prehistoric times in what is now known as the county of Cumbria. Things are complicated by the fact that many of the beech stands in the area are known to have been planted, and by the fact that Southern England, where the beech is considered native, is experiencing a decline in the species thought to be tied to climate change. As the campaign presses on, there remains some controversy regarding the history of the species in England, as well as whether beech should be considered an invasive species, whether it is native or not. You can read more about the campaign to protect the beech here.

Fun With YouTube

Recent YouTube videos with a fresh, crisp, invasive species theme:

• The Statesman Journal has an interesting report about the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's search for non-native fish species in the wild. There's one about invasive American bullfrogs as well.
• Someone was nice enough to capture the lecture given David Orwig of Harvard Forest about the hemlock woolly adelgid and stick the whole thing on YouTube.
• The Florida Department of Agriculture has a creepy, crawly PSA about the Mexican red-rump tarantula.
• The Great Lakes Mayors hosted an hour-long panel on invasive species issues.
• The Zoological Society of London posted a video about surveys for invasive species in the Thames River, including the Asian clam and the zebra mussel.

Red Alert, Indeed!

The Scotsman is reporting that Britain has authorized the release of more than 250 grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) into the wild over the past two years. Given that the grey squirrel is an American species tied to the decline of the UK's native red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris), this recent revelation has some environmental groups scratching their heads in amazement.

Unfortunately the article does not provide any information about why the animals were released, or even why they were captured in the first place (probably caught chewing on power lines somewhere ;-))...so for more on the story, head over to the European Squirrel Initiative's news page, where they note that the British government deemed the release of "rehabilitated" grey squirrels okay given that the number they were permitting to be released was tiny in proportion to the number that already exist in the wild, and that they weren't allowing the greys to be released in areas that reds are known to still inhabit.

Animal rights groups in Scotland, where grey squirrels are routinely hunted down and euthanized, are now recommending that all Scottish greys be sent over to England, with one spokesperson noting that

"We don't believe it is acceptable to kill one species of squirrel in an attempt to try to conserve populations of another species of squirrel"

There do appear to be regulations in place to prevent such a transfer from occurring, but they are specifically related to the potential spread of disease.

Robin Hood And His Merry Moths

Sherwood Forest, one of several purported homes of Robin of Loxley (Robin Hood), is currently under threat by not one, but two different introduced moth species. According to this report at BBC News, the oak processionary moth (Thaumetopoea processionea) and the brown tail moth (Euproctis chrysorrhoea), introductions from Europe, are now both established in England. Biologists are quite concerned about the potential impact on the ancient oaks of Sherwood Forest if the moths arrive there. There is an attempt underway to manage the brown tail moth populations in nearby locations using pheremone traps...not sure what they're doing about the processionary moths though.

Thanks to biosparite for sending in a link to this story.

Turns Out You Really Can Get Crabs From A Toilet Seat

UK residents impacted by the recent floods are now dealing with yet another crisis: Chinese mitten crabs (Eriocheir sinensis) crawling out of their toilets.

At first I thought this was a hoax along the lines of the infamous "toilet spider" emails that made the rounds in the late 1990s, but apparently it is real. Water levels have risen so high in the area of Hampton, England that the crabs are able to travel right up the pipes and out into people's homes. This is Local London has the story (along with a rather inappropriate photo of a mitten crab on a plate). The UK's Environment Agency is warning people to, well, keep their toilet seats down.

The crabs aren't just staying in the sewers either - The Richmond and Twickenham Times has this report about a woman who has seen dozens of them running around in her garden over the past week. Chinese mitten crabs were discovered in Europe back in the early 1900s, but until recently their populations in England had remained low. At the very least, this disaster has certainly raised their profile in the minds of homeowners across the UK.