King of the World

Hailing from the far eastern parts of Russia, the King crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) is invading Norway and killing native crabs along the way. As reported in this BBC article, the crabs have been in Norwegian water for about 30 years, and are now being found further north than ever before. While the crabs have no natural enemies, Norway is upping the annual quota for fishermen who wish to catch and sell them. Interestingly, the BBC published this article online in August 2000, in which they put a more positive spin on the story, claiming that the crabs were benign.

Seaweed tries to go bi-coastal

Scientists in the San Francisco area have begun an eradication program for the east coast brown algae known as rockweed (Ascophyllum nodosum), according to this article from The Argus Online. While this seaweed has been known on the west coast for over a quarter of a century, researchers noted its recent rapid spread and decided to take action. Rockweed is suspected to have been introduced through its use as a packing material for seafood and bait.

Gobble, gobble, gobble

Suburban residents in Marin County, California are being overrun by wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo), according to this story from KRON (Channel 4). The turkeys, native to other parts of the U.S., were introduced to California for hunting over a century ago. A sudden population explosion has the birds strutting around homeowners' gardens, and many are not amused. As one resident commented, "...when they start eating my tomatoes and stuff, then the war's on."

Raising Canes

At first glance, this looks like a nice story about a pulp mill trying to make good use of a nasty invasive plant. Unfortunately, it turns out that Samoa Pacific Cellulose (SPC), which started shipping giant reed (giant cane, Arundo donax) after wood chips and demand for them both became scarce, can't make a decent profit from buying the grass that's collected in small batches from infested sites across the country. The company's idea is to farm the stuff, planting 5000 acres of it in Central Valley, California. Luckily for this part of California, giant reed doesn't seem to grow very well there (for now), and though this is frustrating for SPC, it does mean that the chance of the species becoming invasive there is lessened. Still, there is concern about the potential for the species to spread to wetlands from the site where it will be planted or during transport. SPC is marketing the pulp under the trade name "Samoa cane," which they insist is proprietary. The grass yields short fibers that can be used for products like tissue paper, and because the pulp is wood-free, it may command a higher price in U.S. markets as well as overseas.

Aural Invasion

Missing boats, disappearing people...is it a murder mystery, or are Invasive Species wreaking havoc? Newsbob Industries has created an old-time radio show for your listening pleasure. Listen as the characters use evidence and cheesy sound effects to figure out the mystery of what's plaguing the Great Lakes, while they teach you about various invasive species issues.

The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out

A paper published in the December issue of the journal Conservation Biology concludes that European earthworms (including Eisenia hortensis) are threatening the rare goblin fern (Botrychium mormo) in forests in Minnesota. North American earthworms are found mostly in more southerly climates, so if you live in the northern parts of the continent, it's likely that all the earthworms you see are introduced. The addition of the earthworms to the forest ecosystem causes a decrease in the thickness of the forest floor. The study, done by Michael Gundale at Michigan Technological University, showed that goblin ferns were missing from parts of the forest where the litter layer was thinner. You can read about a similar study here.

Thanks to ScienceDaily for posting information about this study.

Shoo Fushou!

As reported in the People's Daily, researchers and government officials in China are calling for stricter regulations governing the introduction of non-native species, following two high profile cases of invading non-native species. The Fushou snail (I think the article is referring to the golden apple snail Pomacea canaliculata, but I am not positive) and the water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), both intentionally introduced South American natives, have invaded aquatic ecosystems in China, causing environmental and economic damage, and evading attempts to control them. While in America we don't often hear about invasive species in Asian countries, it turns out that many of them are actually native to our part of the world. You can read a bit more about invasive species in China by clicking here.

Thanks to a member of the ALIENS-L listerserver for posting the link to this article.