New in the Literature

Recently published journal articles:

• "Invasion of Agave species (Agavaceae) in south-east Spain: invader demographic parameters and impacts on native species" by Ernesto I. Badano and Francisco I. Pugnaire. Diversity & Distributions. 10(5-6), pp. 493+ (.pdf link on page)
• "A new species of sea anemone from Chile, Anemonia alicemartinae n. sp. (Cnidaria: Anthozoa). An invader or an indicator for environmental change in shallow water?" by Verena Häussermanna and Günter Försterraa. Organisms Diversity & Evolution. 1(3), pp. 211-224.
• "Modelling the distribution and interaction of introduced rodents on New Zealand offshore islands" by James C. Russell and Mick N. Clout. Global Ecology & Biogeography. 13(6), pp. 497+

Tumbleweedy

Science Blog has this story about using Russian thistle (Salsola tragus, a tumbleweed not related to the true thistles) and other weeds to suck up depleted uranium from contaminated soil. Sounds good, but then what do they use to suck up all of the Russian thistle? :-)

How did they find it?

Weather loaches (Misgurnus anguillicaudatus) were my favorite fish to buy for our tropical aquarium when I was growing up. I thought it was neat because they buried themselves in the gravel and went crazy when the barometric pressure changed. After a few months of not seeing one, we would root around in the gravel, but could never find any trace of it. So I wonder how the heck someone found a weather loach in a wetland in Oregon, as reported here (from the NAS Alert System). Apparently the fish have escaped from fish farms and have also been used as bait. The fact that this species can handle low dissolved oxygen levels probably makes it a prime candidate to populate disturbed, eutrophic bodies of water.

Urban Birds

There's a new book out about the monk parakeet (Myiopsitta monachus) and its place in urban habitats. "Parrots in the City, One Bird's Struggle for a Place on the Planet" sounds like it is going to leaning way towards the pro-parrot side. For balance, you may want to peruse these excellent ISW posts from guest blogger Jason South: Monk Parakeets I and Monk Parakeets II. "Parrots in the City" is also available here as an ebook.

Jumping Brahminy!

Brahminy worms (Ramphotyphlops braminus) are a tropical species of snake, so what the heck are they doing way up in Minnesota? Yard & Garden Line News has the story. Biologists think they hitchhiked over in the soil of a potted plant. The Asian snakes are established in Florida and Hawaii but are not thought to pose a threat in Minnesota, because it would be difficult for them to survive the chilly winters. Unfortunately the reptiles are parthenogenetic, meaning that they don't need males to reproduce.

Making Lemonade from Alien Lemons

The Honolulu Star Bulletin has a nice story about Hawaiian clothing artist Anna Peach. Anna uses many of the islands' alien plants to build unique sculptures of dresses, shoes and corsets. Anna says some people want to wear her work, but she knows that could contribute to the further spread of the invasives from which she harvests seed. See examples of Anna's work here, or visit her studio web page.

Surrender

Looks like that Mexican town I blogged about last week has given up the fight against a huge rat infestation. Atascaderos officials are now saying the town's inhabitants will just have to learn to live with the long-tailed critters - all 250,000 of them. Again, Cat Out Loud blog has gone on quite a rant...head on over there for a good read. Here's the link to a report from BBC News as well.